China News Service, February 10. According to Agence France-Presse, when humans are injured, they should disinfect and bandage the wound first. Scientists in Gabon, a West African country, observed chimpanzees catching insects, smashing them, and applying them to open wounds. And will use this "magic recipe" as a companion therapy.
Whether chimpanzees and animals in general have the ability to selflessly help their fellows is an ongoing debate in the scientific community.
The study, published today in the journal Current Biology, makes an important contribution to the scientific debate.
The research project began in 2019 when scientists observed an adult female chimpanzee named Suzee examining the wound on her son's foot.
On December 29, 2021 local time, in the town of Palace on the River Labe, Czech Republic, chimpanzees in the local wildlife park looked in the mirror and made various actions in front of the mirror.
Image credit: Sipaphoto
Then, Suzy suddenly grabbed an insect from the air, put it in her mouth and smashed it, then applied it to her son's wound, then removed the insect from the wound and smeared it twice.
The scene took place in Loango National Park on Gabon's Atlantic coast, where researchers studied 45 chimpanzees.
In the 15 months after that, the scientists observed the chimps giving themselves the same treatment at least 19 times.
In two other cases, the scientists saw one or more chimpanzees treat their injured companions with the same "recipe."
The wounds on chimpanzees may come from conflicts with members of the same group or opposing groups. The wounds can sometimes be several centimeters wide. The injured chimpanzees do not resist "insect therapy", but are willing to accept care.
Study co-author Simone Pika said: "It takes a lot of trust to put an insect into an open wound. They seem to understand, 'If you do this to me with this insect, my wound will get better'. It's really amazing."
The researchers were unable to identify the species of insect the chimps were using in the therapy, but they thought it was a flying insect because chimps moved quickly to catch them.
Pickar said the insect may contain soothing anti-inflammatory substances.
Scientists have observed birds, bears, elephants and other animals self-medicate by eating plants.
But chimpanzees are unique in that they not only heal themselves, but also help their fellows.
However, Picka said some scientists remain skeptical that animals can exhibit prosocial behaviors, such as selfless caring for their peers.