Habitual ground nesting in the Bugoma Forest chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii), Uganda

Abstract

We report the presence of habitual ground nesting in a newly studied East African chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii) population in the Bugoma Central Forest Reserve, Uganda. Across a 2-year period, we encountered 891 night nests, 189 of which were classified as ground nests, a rate of ~21%. We find no preliminary evidence of socio-ecological factors that would promote its use and highlight local factors, such as high incidence of forest disturbance due to poaching and logging, which appear to make its use disadvantageous. While further study is required to establish whether this behavior meets the strict criteria for nonhuman animal culture, we support the argument that the wider use of population and group-specific behavioral repertoires in flagship species, such as chimpanzees, offers a tool to promote the urgent conservation action needed to protect threatened ecosystems, including the Bugoma forest.