Young Female Chimps Play With Stick “Dolls”

All babies love to play and young chimpanzees are no exception. Researchers in Kibale National Park in Uganda have noticed something: young female chimps will play with sticks like they are dolls! “The stick serves no immediate function, they just carry it–sometimes for a few minutes, other times for hours,” says an e-mail by study leader Richard Wrangham, a biological anthropologist at Harvard University. “Carriers regularly take sticks into the nests they rest in during the day, something that isn’t done with other objects. Individuals are [also] known to play with their sticks while in their nests.”

Similar behavior has noticed with animals in zoos, too. Captive female monkeys have been noticed to prefer doll toys, while the males play with trucks.

Read more about baby chimps and their toys on National Geographic News

Get the facts on chimps in the Creature Feature.

Photograph by Michael Poliza, National Geographic/Getty Images

Comments

DinomiteExplosion
December 27, 2010, 9:08 pm

The chimp is so cute
Pinky Caine
December 28, 2010, 9:49 am

That is so cute i really like the picture! It is so cute!
picker123
December 28, 2010, 6:10 pm

that is very funny and very weird at the same time but,I guess a chimp has to do what a chimp has to do……but that chimp is a cutie.Once I did a report on chimps and at first I hated it but now,I love chimps they are so adorable!!!Chimps live in very cool cultures…..And have almost 98% of our genetic bluprint,I love babie animals!They have so much cool stuff about them that alot of people don’t know…..
Pinky Caine
December 31, 2010, 10:55 pm

Happy New year everyone!
mani luvs u
January 1, 2011, 11:19 am

that is funny and strange. just like humans. well we are mostly chimp. omg that chimp is soooooooo cute!
pandalover2000
January 2, 2011, 7:48 pm

wow, mayb chimps r more like humans than I thought
chicken
January 3, 2011, 9:41 am

That little chimp is so cute chimps and monkeys are my favorite by far!(pretty little chimp)
watermelon
January 3, 2011, 9:42 am

so cute
monkeylifes
January 3, 2011, 9:43 am

The monkey is so cute you should make more pics!
Iwuvyou:)
January 3, 2011, 10:19 am

That little monkey is cute and i think that is adorbale that the play with sticks like we play with dolls.. The stick is its bestfriend:)
iloveyou(:
January 3, 2011, 10:19 am

This monkey is soooo adorable! it’s funny how the play with sticks like we would play with dolls.
Twilightgl101
January 3, 2011, 10:21 am

wow that monkey is sooooooo cute!!!
Syd Squid
January 3, 2011, 10:38 am

i love this little monkey!!(:
acrseasnake
January 3, 2011, 12:22 pm

animals have so much curiosity dont the esspecially primates
bob123
January 3, 2011, 12:56 pm

sweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeet
bluetinypeople
January 3, 2011, 12:56 pm

well thats very awesome since mabe they get bored during the day and they just wanna play so and yall are correct the chimp is cute.
boo22
January 3, 2011, 12:58 pm

he looks so cool
lazyhmk
January 3, 2011, 12:59 pm

that is adorable. it reminds me of a little girl playin with her dolls. chimps can be so cuuuuutttte!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
bob123
January 3, 2011, 1:05 pm

its a girl boo22
animallover123
January 5, 2011, 8:05 am

The chimps are awesome and adorable, and also very smart. They used sticks as dolls and that is a brilliant idea. They are such intlligent animals don’t you think? Wonderful, wonderful & wonderful!!!!!!!!!
tilly
January 5, 2011, 5:42 pm

omg that chimp is so cute and so is my boyfriend
Foxlover7
January 9, 2011, 4:06 pm

awwwwww!!!!!!!!!! thats soooooooooooooooo CCCCUUUUTTTTEEEE!!!!!!!!!! it reminds me of my dog!!!!!!11