Talking to Bonobos

The bonobo, Pan paniscus, looks like a smaller version of the chimpazee. In fact, they are close relatives to chimps, but are a separate species.

Bonobos live in a small area of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Size is not the only thing that makes them different from chimps.  Bonobo culture is considered matriarcal, with male status tied to the mother's status in the group.  Bonobos are significantly less aggressive than chimps, very likely because they are highly sexual.  Relationships and social status are reinforced with frequent sexual activity, both heterosexual and homosexual, among both sexes.  Perhaps one of the reasons bonobos are not often found on display in zoos is because they are are prone to sexual behavior, all day, every day.  As a way of maintaining relationships and keeping the peace, it appears to work very well for them.

Given that bonobos are such close relatives to humans, could it be that our cultural morays are causing us to stifle our own natural sexual instincts?   I think that case could be made, just on the anecdotal evidence.  Bonobos benefit socially from the frequent expression of their sexuality.  I don't guess we're going to see humans emulating them any time soon, but we might benefit from being a bit more tolerant of the many ways that people do express that part of their lives.

In Iowa, there is a research center, where a family group of bonobos resides.  They are clearly very intelligent. The whole group has learned 400 symbols that relate to ideas or words. They are able to communciate with researchers using these symbols.

Now, there is an effort underway to create an electronic interface that will translate bonobo symbolic communciation into words spoken by a robotic bonobo.  A clever way to foster interspecies communications. 

Here is the link to the robotic bonobo development project...

http://www.gizmag.com/bonobo-chat-ape-communication-app/22002/?utm_source=Gizmag+Subscribers&utm_campaign=5156a9d703-UA-2235360-4&utm_medium=email

There are only about 40,000 bonobos left in the wild. Their numbers have dropped significantly in recent years, mostly because of poaching.  The Congo is a place where a large portion of the growing human population relies on bushmeat from wild animals for food.  They hunt bonobos and kill them for food.

In fact, human population growth is the chief threat to bonobo survival. The Congo is a place larger than all of Europe combined. It is also the center of an ongoing human genocide. More than ten million people have died violent deaths over the last two decades.  Despite that fact, the human population has been growing at a rate of 3% annually. The current population of nearly 70 million is expected to swell to 180 million by 2050. What does that mean for the Congo's wild animal species? It's deeply depressing to think that bonobos, chimps, and gorillas, the closest relatives to humans, could be wiped out by humans consuming them for food.  That very likely will happen before the end of this century. We humans should find a way to prevent it. We shoud encourage a sustainable future for the Congo that celebrates and protects that nation's unique biological heritage. Unfortunately, very little like that is happening,  and time is running out.