At about the same time, fieldworkers on the other side of the. McGrew and Tutin's pioneering report on the evidence for a 'social custom' in wild chimpanzees was published in 1978, but its importance was not fully recognized until later. Holding their hands over their genitals makes men feel safer when threatened. This was a turning point for McGrew, who at that moment realized that scientists had hitherto been labouring under a simple misapprehension: that chimpanzee social life was the same everywhere. But Itani was unimpressed: "Don't all chimpanzees do this?" he asked. These two groups have been habituated and studied for decades (Nishida 1990, Nishida, Uehara, and Kawanaka 2002). In addition to its hygienic function, it may signal. It is a striking variant of normal social grooming, shown in some populations of these apes but not in others. Returning to camp the same evening, McGrew and Tutin mentioned their discovery of the 'grooming hand-clasp' to their host, Junichiro Itani. hand-clasp performed by the chimpanzees of K (Kaja-bala)-group and M (Mimikire)-group. Grooming hand clasp is a behavioral pattern shown by chimpanzees ( Pan troglodytes) and appears to be a rare example of a social custom, and thus is an indicator of nonhuman culture. The two chimpanzees were in perfect symmetry. ![]() ![]() This created a sort of 'A-frame' postural configuration that revealed the armpit of the raised limb, which was then groomed by the other's opposite hand. At one point, each fully extended one arm overhead and clasped the other's hand. The two chimpanzees were sat on the ground facing one another, and were engaged in mutual grooming. Until then they had been studying wild chimpanzees at Gombe, about 120 km to the north, but on their first day at Mahale they saw two chimpanzees perform a striking behaviour that was completely new to them. Thirty years ago, two young researchers, William McGrew and Caroline Tutin, visited the Mahale Mountains in western Tanzania. ![]() The Cultured Chimpanzee: Reflections on Cultural Primatologyīy William McGrew Cambridge University Press : 2004.
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