This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: In humans, hunting is considered a man's endeavor. But in one of our closest living relatives, hunting is primarily women's business.
A 10-year study of wild bonobos reveals that hunting is predominantly carried out by females, regardless of whether they carry infants. They are just as skilled as males at the dangerous task of hunting monkeys in the tree canopy and are more likely than males to take down large terrestrial prey. The study, led by researchers from the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior (MPI-AB), is the first to examine hunting behavior in two wild bonobo communities across a decade and thus overturns the species' reputation as largely nonhunting.
The research is published in the journal Current Biology. "Bonobos not only capture a wide variety of prey," says first author Dr. Gottfried Hohmann, "their communities also develop distinct hunting cultures." The study's results also challenge narratives of gender differences in early humans.
"Bonobos are a window into humanity's past," says senior author Barbara Fruth. "Thanks to these females, we can rethink the image we have formed of our hunter-gatherer ancestors." Bonobos are not known as great hunters. Among the great apes, it is the bonobo's closest relative—the chimpanzee—who is the famed hunter.
Individuals can cooperate in highly coordinated attacks that take down large primates from treetops. These hunts are carried out by males working together, who then share the prey among themselves. "In chimpanzees, hunting is the business of males because keeping the reward is related to dominance," says Fruth.
"But what happens in a society where females enjoy high status?" Bonobos are unique among great apes because females are dominant alongside males. This is evident after a kill when females are in possession of the prey and decide who gets to eat and when. Fruth and Hohmann wondered if these powerful females would invert the male bias in hunting typical of chimpanzee societies.
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