Nature & Environment

Chimps observed crafting and using spears

By T.K. Randall
April 15, 2015

Image: Common Chimpanzee at the Leipzig Zoo
Credit: Thomas Lersch / CC BY-SA 3.0 (adapted) It might sound like something out of "Planet of the Apes" but now it seems that humans aren't the only primates on the planet capable of creating and using weapons to hunt and kill prey.

Anthropologists observing chimpanzee behavior in a region called Fongoli in West Africa noted that the chimps had developed the ability to craft a basic but effective spear by breaking off tree branches, stripping away all the twigs and then gnawing at the tip with their teeth to make it in to a sharp point.The team also found that female chimpanzees used the spears a lot more frequently than the males who tended to rely more on their size and strength while out hunting.

"In a number of primate species, females are the innovators and more frequent tool users, so I think it is possible that a female invented this technique," said study lead author Dr Jill Pruetz.

This remarkable demonstration of tool use in primates is also thought to reflect how some of our earliest ancestors first learned how to build weapons to help them hunt prey.

Source: ABC.net.au

Tags: Chimpanzee, Primate