Photo courtesy of Tasikoki Wildlife Rescue
We are finding out more and more about animals who use ‘tools’ in their daily lives. Animals in a group may also learn from each other and pass this information on to each other. Scientists call this ‘cultural transmission’.
The first documented case of wild orangutans making and using tools was reported from a population of orangutans in Indonesia in 1996. They used tools which they had crafted either for extracting insects or seeds to eat.
Researchers then went on to look at how tool-use varied between orangutans living in different regions. They compared the tool-use of orangutans at six different areas. It was found that the different orangutan populations behaved differently and these differences were greatest between groups living furthest apart. Orangutans who lived in larger groups and who were socially tolerant used tools more than those who were isolated.
Photo courtesy of Tasikoki Wildlife Rescue
The evidence suggested that the differences in behavior were cultural: firstly, because the extent of the differences increased with distance, and secondly, because the extent of the orangutans’ tool-use increased according the amount of social contact in their group. Social contact increases the amount of cultural transmission.
This video clip shows orangutans at a sanctuary copying behaviours they learned through observing their human counterparts. They learned how to manoeuvre a canoe, paint, wash with soap and even use a saw!
Orangutans are fascinating animals but their future is under threat. Their rainforest habitat is being cut down at an alarming rate for logging and agriculture, including plantations of palm oil, a vegetable oil widely used in food and everyday products. You may wish to choose products which do not contain palm oil. Some companies claim to use sustainably-produced palm oil.
Sources:
van Schaik C.P., Fox,E.A., Sitompul AF. (1996). Manufacture and use of tools in wild Sumatran orangutans – implications or human evolution. Naturwissenschaften 83: 186-188.
van Schaik C.P., Knott C.D., (2001) Geographic variation in tool use on Neesia fruits in orangutans. American Journal of Physical Anthropology 114:331-342
van Schaik C.P., van Noordwijk M.A., Wich, S.A. (2006) Innovation in wild Bornean orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus wurmbii). Behaviour 143: 839-876
van Schaik C.P., Ancrenaz M., Borgen G., Galdikas B., Knott C.D., Singleton I., Suzuki A., Utami S.S., Merrill M. (2003). Orangutan cultures and the evolution of material culture. Science 299: 102-105
