Strange

Zoo Chimp Planned Stone Attacks

by Jordan Yerman | March 9, 2009 at 11:03 am

311 views | 2 Recommendations | 3 comments

Next time a chimpanzee throws a rock at you, it may not be just a random act, but part of a cunning plan.

Researchers at a Swedish zoo found that their chimp, Santino, was like a hairier Michael Schofield, collecting rocks during the predawn hours, hoarding them, and just waiting for the opportunity to huck them at zoo visitors.

Not like he had anything else to do.

Keepers at Furuvik Zoo found that the chimp collected and stored stones that he would later use as missiles.

Further, the chimp learned to recognise how and when parts of his concrete enclosure could be pulled apart to fashion further projectiles.

What this shows is that chimps can plan for the future: an abstract future: not just seeing when a human is on his or her way to the cage, but knowing that a human will at some point visit, and that he would have to somehow establish dominance, even with a barrier between him and his competitors.

According to Spike TV, chimps have attacked 90 people in the past 15 years... in the US alone, where they're not even native.
(Source: "What cuddly animals can take you down?")

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kuuva

at 12:02 on March 9th, 2009

you know if i was a chimpanzee in a zoo, i would do the same thing. it would be so fun just waiting for the opportunity to hit my captors.

Keith Ranville

at 14:32 on March 9th, 2009

I think they should have humans in cages for no apparrent reasons and see how we react.. we would act more destructive. I would imagine? Those poor primates.. I am talking about the ignorant people that put them there!