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Wild Chimpanzees Film Themselves Sharing Fermented Fruit
In a remarkable observation, researchers have documented wild chimpanzees consuming and sharing fermented fruit containing traces of alcohol. This intriguing behavior was the focus of a study published on April 21 in Current Biology.
The research team monitored a population in Cantanhez National Park, a large protected area in Guinea-Bissau, West Africa. The chimpanzees were observed sharing African breadfruit, known for its ethanol content.
The motivations behind this behavior remain uncertain. While humans have a long history of consuming alcohol, partly for its social benefits, it’s yet to be established whether chimpanzees might be pursuing similar advantages. The research hints at the possibility that this fruit-sharing could relate to social dynamics similar to those observed in humans.
“For humans, alcohol consumption triggers dopamine and endorphin release, promoting feelings of joy and relaxation,” noted Anna Bowland, co-author of the study and a conservation biologist at the University of Exeter. “We also understand that alcohol-sharing traditions, like feasting, enhance social connections. So, as we recognize that wild chimpanzees consume and share these alcoholic fruits, we must consider whether they may experience parallel social benefits,” she remarked.
During the research, motion-activated cameras captured chimpanzees sharing the fermented fruit on ten different occasions. Subsequent tests revealed that the highest alcohol concentration found in the fruit was approximately 0.61 percent Alcohol By Volume (ABV). For comparison, a conventional beer contains about five percent ABV, while red wine averages around 13.5 percent ABV.
[ Related: ‘Drunk’ animals may be more common than previously thought. ]
Despite the relatively low ABV, researchers caution that this could represent just the beginning of the chimps’ potential alcohol consumption. Considering that fruit constitutes 60 to 85 percent of a chimpanzee’s diet, even slight alcohol levels could accumulate significantly over time.
Importantly, the researchers emphasize that these chimps are unlikely to experience inebriation, which could pose survival challenges. The precise effects of the alcohol on their physiology remain under investigation. Additionally, recent findings suggest that a molecular adaptation in the common ancestor of African apes might facilitate better ethanol metabolism, indicating that the consumption of fermented fruits is not a novel behavior, but could have deep evolutionary roots, shared by both humans and chimpanzees.
“Chimpanzees don’t frequently share food,” said Kimberley Hockings, another co-author and conservation ecologist at the University of Exeter. She elaborated, “This specific behavior with fermented fruit may hold significance. We need further research to determine whether chimps intentionally seek out such fruits and how they metabolize them. If this behavior is indeed an early form of ‘feasting,’ it could imply that the human practice of communal eating has ancient evolutionary origins.”
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