News in Brief Anthropology

Strategy, not habitat loss, leads chimps to kill rivals

Human impacts on the apes have not increased their violence

Chimpanzee male named Titan

BAD DUDE  Chimpanzee males, such as Titan shown here, kill stray members of nearby communities whom they perceive as rivals for food and mates, a new study finds.

Ian Gilby

By Bruce Bower

- More than 2 years ago

Foraging chimpanzees gang up on and kill stray members of nearby chimp communities to eliminate competitors for food and mates, whether or not people have intruded on the animals’ territories, an international team of primatologists says.