Scott Hanko
Sumatran Orangutan
Pongo pygmaeus abelii
Like any young adult, Indah has a rebellious streak. Case in point: upon arriving at the San Diego Zoo in 1992, she escaped to the viewing deck. Obviously athletic, Indah is also highly intelligent, likes cleanliness, and enjoys magazines and photos of dogs and horses. She's even a rebel when it comes to food—Indah likes spinach! She became a mother March 5, 2004 with the birth of her son, Cinta. She arrived in San Diego in 1992.
Like the other great apes, orangutans are among the most intelligent primates. Wild chimpanzees have been known to use tools since the 1960’s. Tool use in orangutans has been observed in ex-captive populations
Evidence of sophisticated tool manufacture and use in the wild was reported from a population of orangutans in Suaq Balimbing (Pongo pygmaeus abelii) in 1996. These orangutans developed a tool kit for use in foraging that consisted of insect-extraction tools for use in the hollows of trees, and seed-extraction tools which were used in harvesting seeds from hard-husked fruit. The orangutans adjusted their tools according to the nature of the task at hand and preference was given to oral tool use. This preference was also found in an experimental study of captive orangutans (P. pygmaeus).
Carel P. van Schaik from the University of Zurich and Cheryl D. Knott from Harvard University further investigated tool use in different wild orangutan populations. They compared geographic variations in tool use related to the processing of Neesia fruit. The orangutans of Suaq Balimbing (P. abelii) were found to be avid users of insect and seed-extraction tools when compared to other wild orangutans. The scientists suggested that these differences are cultural. The orangutans at Suaq Balimbing live in dense groups and are socially tolerant; this creates good conditions for social transmission. Further evidence that highly social orangutans are more likely to exhibit cultural behaviors came from a study of leaf-carrying behaviors of ex-captive orangutans that were being rehabilitated on the island of Kaja in Borneo. The above evidence is consistent with the existence of orangutan culture as geographically distinct behavioral variants which are maintained and transmitted in a population through social learning.
In 2003, researchers from six different orangutan field sites who used the same behavioral coding scheme compared the behaviors of the animals from the different sites. They found that the different orangutan populations behaved differently. The evidence suggested that the differences in behavior were cultural: first, because the extent of the differences increased with distance, suggesting that cultural diffusion was occurring, and second, because the size of the orangutans’ cultural repertoire increased according the amount of social contact present within the group. Social contact facilitates cultural transmission. Carel P. van Schaik suggests that young orangutans (P. abelii) acquire tool use skills and cultural behaviors by observing and copying older orangutans.
Orangutans do not limit their tool use to foraging, displaying or nest-building activities. Wild orangutans (P. pygmaeus wurmbii) in Tuanan, Borneo, were reported to use tools in acoustic communication. They use leaves to amplify the kiss squeak sounds that they produce. Some have suggested that the apes employ this method of amplification in order to deceive the listener into believing that they are larger animals.
San Diego Zoo-San Diego Ca.
Sumatran Orangutan
Pongo pygmaeus abelii
Like any young adult, Indah has a rebellious streak. Case in point: upon arriving at the San Diego Zoo in 1992, she escaped to the viewing deck. Obviously athletic, Indah is also highly intelligent, likes cleanliness, and enjoys magazines and photos of dogs and horses. She's even a rebel when it comes to food—Indah likes spinach! She became a mother March 5, 2004 with the birth of her son, Cinta. She arrived in San Diego in 1992.
Like the other great apes, orangutans are among the most intelligent primates. Wild chimpanzees have been known to use tools since the 1960’s. Tool use in orangutans has been observed in ex-captive populations
Evidence of sophisticated tool manufacture and use in the wild was reported from a population of orangutans in Suaq Balimbing (Pongo pygmaeus abelii) in 1996. These orangutans developed a tool kit for use in foraging that consisted of insect-extraction tools for use in the hollows of trees, and seed-extraction tools which were used in harvesting seeds from hard-husked fruit. The orangutans adjusted their tools according to the nature of the task at hand and preference was given to oral tool use. This preference was also found in an experimental study of captive orangutans (P. pygmaeus).
Carel P. van Schaik from the University of Zurich and Cheryl D. Knott from Harvard University further investigated tool use in different wild orangutan populations. They compared geographic variations in tool use related to the processing of Neesia fruit. The orangutans of Suaq Balimbing (P. abelii) were found to be avid users of insect and seed-extraction tools when compared to other wild orangutans. The scientists suggested that these differences are cultural. The orangutans at Suaq Balimbing live in dense groups and are socially tolerant; this creates good conditions for social transmission. Further evidence that highly social orangutans are more likely to exhibit cultural behaviors came from a study of leaf-carrying behaviors of ex-captive orangutans that were being rehabilitated on the island of Kaja in Borneo. The above evidence is consistent with the existence of orangutan culture as geographically distinct behavioral variants which are maintained and transmitted in a population through social learning.
In 2003, researchers from six different orangutan field sites who used the same behavioral coding scheme compared the behaviors of the animals from the different sites. They found that the different orangutan populations behaved differently. The evidence suggested that the differences in behavior were cultural: first, because the extent of the differences increased with distance, suggesting that cultural diffusion was occurring, and second, because the size of the orangutans’ cultural repertoire increased according the amount of social contact present within the group. Social contact facilitates cultural transmission. Carel P. van Schaik suggests that young orangutans (P. abelii) acquire tool use skills and cultural behaviors by observing and copying older orangutans.
Orangutans do not limit their tool use to foraging, displaying or nest-building activities. Wild orangutans (P. pygmaeus wurmbii) in Tuanan, Borneo, were reported to use tools in acoustic communication. They use leaves to amplify the kiss squeak sounds that they produce. Some have suggested that the apes employ this method of amplification in order to deceive the listener into believing that they are larger animals.
San Diego Zoo-San Diego Ca.