AS-HOPE report

Number:AS-22-027

Study on "greeting behavior" of wild bonobos

Report: SAKAMAKI, Tetsuya

Date:2010/10/03 - 2011/02/26

Bonobos form a multi-male and multi-female unit group, in which members of the group associate in temporary parties. The theme of this study was "greeting behavior," or social interactions in the context of reunion between temporary parties. The study subject was bonobos of E1 Group at Wamba in the Luo Scientific Reserve, D. R. Congo. I and local research assistants identified all the individuals of E1 Group, and usually followed them all day long. While following them, we always confirmed the individuals within sight, by which we identified the scene of reunion, and gathered the data of social interactions occurring during the reunion. Since such "reunion" scenes were not observed many times, I am analyzing not only the data of this study but also the data that I collected during the other study periods in 2007-2009. I started the analyses of the data during the field study.

Member of the Centre de Recherche en Ecologie et Foresterie , Congo


Sarah: swelling of sexual skin


Research assistants and retirees gathered in the research station.

AS-HOPE Project<>