Potoooooooo
Contributor
http://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart...ng-grass-ears-and-nobody-knows-why-180951888/
It all started with a Zambian chimpanzee named Julie in 2010. Julie stuck a piece of grass into her ear, and left it there. And she would do it over and over again. But why? To save it for later, for some unknown purpose? For fun? To show that she understood she would become dust and one day fertilize the grass, in an ironic nod to The Lion King?
Actually, this "grass-in-ear-behavior" appears to serve no discernible function. But after Julie did it, other chimps in her group began to follow suit.
It's no surprise that chimpanzees have "culture," in that different groups develop different traditions, including unique behaviors and tools. But usually these things have a concrete function, whereas this one doesn't, according to the study, published in the journal Animal Cognition.
It all started with a Zambian chimpanzee named Julie in 2010. Julie stuck a piece of grass into her ear, and left it there. And she would do it over and over again. But why? To save it for later, for some unknown purpose? For fun? To show that she understood she would become dust and one day fertilize the grass, in an ironic nod to The Lion King?
Actually, this "grass-in-ear-behavior" appears to serve no discernible function. But after Julie did it, other chimps in her group began to follow suit.
It's no surprise that chimpanzees have "culture," in that different groups develop different traditions, including unique behaviors and tools. But usually these things have a concrete function, whereas this one doesn't, according to the study, published in the journal Animal Cognition.
