Chimpanzees caught copying human habits in bizarre new ‘fashion trend’, scientists stunned by viral primate culture

Chimpanzees at a wildlife sanctuary in Zambia have been observed engaging in what scientists are calling a “fashion trend” of dangling blades of grass or sticks from their ears and even inserting them into their rectums.

The unusual behaviour, first spotted at the Chimfunshi Wildlife Orphanage Trust, appears to have originated in 2010 when a female chimpanzee was seen placing a blade of grass in her ear. Researchers observed that other chimps soon began mimicking the act, with no clear functional purpose behind it.

Dr Ed van Leeuwen, a behavioural biologist at Utrecht University and lead author of the study, said that the chimps seemed “very relaxed” while engaging in the behaviour, suggesting it was not related to hygiene or discomfort. “It’s more like a fashion statement, a social tradition passed from one individual to another,” he explained.

Over a decade later, a separate group of chimpanzees living roughly 15 kilometres away began showing the same ear-dangling behaviour, as well as inserting twigs into their rectums. The groups have no direct contact, which raises the question of how the trend spread.

The human influence

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Van Leeuwen and his team believe the chimpanzees were influenced by human caregivers. Staff at one part of the sanctuary reportedly had a habit of cleaning their own ears with matchsticks or twigs, a routine the chimps may have observed and copied. Years later, some of the same caregivers began working with the second group of chimps, potentially introducing the same behaviour again through indirect social transmission.

“This is a trend that went viral, not through the internet, but via social learning,” said Van Leeuwen.

The evolution of abilities

The phenomenon offers evidence of chimpanzees’ ability to adopt behaviours through observation and imitation, a trait often associated with human culture. One striking example from a separate zoo in the Netherlands involved a female chimp who began walking as if she were carrying a baby, even though she wasn’t. Her behaviour was quickly copied by the rest of the group, and newcomers who adopted the same posture were integrated more smoothly into the group’s social structure.

“This isn’t just mimicry, it’s culture,” Van Leeuwen noted. “These chimps are using social cues to fit in, bond, and communicate.”

While the sanctuary environment, free from predators and competition, gives these chimpanzees more leisure time to explore such behaviours, Van Leeuwen believes wild populations are just as capable of developing similar traditions. It may simply be a matter of time and observation.

Next, Van Leeuwen’s research will focus on whether chimpanzees are capable of developing cumulative culture, the process of building on previous innovations, a hallmark of human civilisation.

Commenting on the study, Dr Elodie Freymann from the University of Oxford, who was not involved in the research, described the findings as “mind-blowing.”

“The idea that chimpanzees may be copying human behaviours opens up new frontiers,” she said. “Could they also be learning from other animal species? This could fundamentally shift our understanding of cultural transmission in the animal kingdom.”

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