A Hand-book to the Primates, Volume 2 (of 2)Forbes, Henry O. (Henry Ogg)
Science
A Hand-book to the Primates, Volume 2 (of 2)
Forbes, Henry O. (Henry Ogg)
Primates
The Chimpanzees inhabit forest regions, and feed on wild fruits in the
woods, and the products of cultivated gardens, not rejecting, when they can
capture it, animal food. They live in separate families, or in limited
communities of small families mixed together, but each male lives with his
own single female. They are more arboreal than the Gorilla, but much less
so than the Orangs. In many districts they seem to live on the ground.
They emit loud cries, shrieks, and howls in the morning and evening, and
often during the night. "Since they are really accomplished in the art of
bringing forth these unpleasant sounds, which may be heard at a great
distance, and are reproduced by the echoes, it is impossible to estimate
the number {193}of those who take part in the dreary noise, but often we
seemed to hear more than a hundred." (_Pechuel-Lösche._) These Apes also
build resting-places, not far from the ground, like the Orangs, composed of
twigs and sticks on the branch of a tree or a crotch, in which the female
and her young take refuge for the night, the male placing himself on guard
beneath.
They seldom make an unprovoked attack on the natives wandering in the
forest; on the contrary, they are peaceably disposed animals, glad to get
out of the way of danger or possible enemies. Yet, when pressed, they form
no mean antagonist. Biting is their principal mode of defence.
"As seen here," says Savage, "they cannot be called gregarious, seldom more
than five or ten at most being found together. It has been said on good
authority, that they occasionally assemble in large numbers in gambols. My
informant asserts that he saw once not less than fifty so engaged, hooting,
screaming, and drumming with sticks upon old logs, which is done in the
latter case with equal facility by the four extremities.... When at rest,
the sitting posture is that generally assumed. They are sometimes seen
standing or walking, but when thus detected, they immediately take to all
fours, and flee from the presence of the observer. Such is their
organisation that they cannot stand erect, but lean forward. Hence they are
seen, when standing, with the hands clasped over the occiput, or the lumbar
region, which would seem necessary for balance or ease of posture."
Most of the accounts of the habits we have of Chimpanzees, refer to those
of young individuals kept in captivity. There is still much to be
discovered as to the ways and modes of life of the adults of both the
Chimpanzee and the Gorilla. They are both very delicate, and in temperate
climates rarely live {194}more than a few months; a Bald Chimpanzee (_A.
calvus_), however, survived five years in the Zoological Gardens, in
London.
I. THE COMMON CHIMPANZEE. ANTHROPOPITHECUS TROGLODYTES.
_Homo sylvestris_ (Ourang-outang), Tyson & Cowper, Phil. Trans., xxi., p.
338 (1699); Tulpius, Observ. Anat., p. 270, pl. 14 (1641).
_Homo troglodytes_, Linn., Syst. Nat., i., p. 32 (1766; pt.).
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