Latest news with #DrElodieFreymann
Telegraph
14-05-2025
- Health
- Telegraph
Watch: Chimpanzees give each other first aid
Chimpanzees use forest first aid to treat wounds and leaves to wipe their bottoms, scientists have found. A study, led by a University of Oxford researcher, catalogued the apes dabbing leaves on their wounds, or applying sap and chewed up plant matter to the injuries. They treated the wounds of other members of their group as well as their own. The research, published in Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, adds to a growing body of evidence on how apes take care of themselves in the wild. Dr Elodie Freymann, of Oxford University's School of Anthropology, said: 'We humans like to fancy ourselves unique in lots of different ways. And I think for a long time, we thought that healthcare was one of those ways in which we humans are special.' She said there was 'a whole behavioural repertoire that chimpanzees use when they're sick or injured in the wild – to treat themselves and to maintain hygiene'. 'Some of these include the use of plants that can be found here. The chimpanzees dab them on their wounds or chew the plants up, and then apply the chewed material to the open injury.' Footage of the apes treating each other was included in the study, conducted in Uganda's Budongo Forest, as well as years of observations noted by field staff, researchers and visitors. A log book dating back to the 1990s was found to include anecdotal accounts of the apes dabbing wounds, removing snares and cleaning themselves with leaves after defecating, or mating. Chimps seek medicinal plants Dr Freymann previously reported that chimpanzees appeared to seek out specific medicinal plants to treat their ailments. A 2024 paper saw researchers test the plants eaten by sick or wounded chimps and found that they often had antibacterial, or anti-inflammatory properties. Meanwhile, an orangutan was recorded applying the leaves of a plant commonly used in traditional medicine to a cut on its face, seemingly to hasten healing. Gorillas, chimpanzees and bonobos have also been recorded swallowing whole leaves from Aspilia plants to get rid of worms. In 2022, a community of chimpanzees in Gabon was seen putting insects onto their open wounds, potentially as a form of first aid. Chimpanzees in captivity have long been observed giving each other basic medical care, including removing splinters and cleaning each other's teeth. 'Empathic capacities' Finding the same tendency in the wild means 'additional evidence for empathic capacities in our closest evolutionary relatives', researchers concluded. They said it was still not clear how the behaviour was learnt or transmitted and 'establishing this will be an important step for understanding whether any components of non-human healthcare systems are influenced by local medicinal cultures'. Studying ape healthcare could even lead to the discovery of new medicines, scientists believe. Dr Freymann told the BBC: 'The more we learn about chimpanzee behaviour and intelligence, the more I think we come to understand how little we as humans actually know about the natural world. 'If I were plopped down here in this forest with no food and no medicine, I doubt that I'd be able to survive very long, especially if I were injured or sick. 'But chimpanzees thrive here because they know how to access the secrets of this place, and how to find all they need to survive from their surroundings.'
The Independent
14-05-2025
- Health
- The Independent
Wild chimpanzees seen giving ‘first aid' to each other with medicinal plants
Chimpanzees in Uganda have been observed using plants to treat open wounds and tend to each other's injuries. University of Oxford scientists, working with a local team in the Budongo Forest, filmed and recorded the animals using plants for first aid. The footage shows the animals licking and dabbing leaves on wounds. Researchers say the footage adds to a growing body of evidence that primates, including chimps, orangutans and gorillas, use natural medicines in a number of ways to stay healthy in the wild. Dr Elodie Freymann of the University of Oxford, first author of the article in Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, said: 'Chimpanzee wound care encompasses several techniques: direct wound licking, which removes debris and potentially applies antimicrobial compounds in saliva; finger licking followed by wound pressing; leaf-dabbing; and chewing plant materials and applying them directly to wounds.' Researchers studied two communities of chimpanzees in the Budongo Forest - Sonso and Waibira. Like all chimpanzees, members of these communities are vulnerable to injuries, whether caused by fights, accidents, or snares set by humans. About 40 per cent of all primates in Sonso have been seen with snare injuries. The researchers spent four months observing each community, as well as drawing on video evidence from the Great Ape Dictionary database, logbooks containing decades of observational data, and a survey of other scientists who had witnessed chimpanzees treating illness or injury. Logbooks dating back to the 1990s show stories of leaf-dabbing on injuries, and chimps helping others to remove snares from their limbs. One note even describes a chimpanzee using leaves to wipe itself after defecating. 'We also documented hygiene behaviours, including the cleaning of genitals with leaves after mating and wiping the anus with leaves after defecation - practices that may help prevent infections,' Dr Freymann said. Scientists identified some of the plants used by the animals, and tests revealed most had antibacterial properties that could improve wound healing. Researchers also recorded 12 injuries in Sonso, all of which were likely caused by within-group conflicts. In Waibira, five chimpanzees were injured - one female by a snare, and four males in fights. There were 41 cases of care recorded, seven of which were caring for others, and 34 cases were self-care. All chimpanzees mentioned in the data recovered from their wounds, but researchers admit they do not know what the outcome would have been had they not done anything about their injuries.
Daily Mail
14-05-2025
- Health
- Daily Mail
That's bananas! Incredible videos show chimps using medicinal leaves to perform first aid
Chimpanzees are among our closest living relatives, but they may be even more like us than we realised. In fact, in the animal kingdom, it seems chimps perform crucial first aid too. Scientists have observed chimps in Uganda cleaning and treating not only their own wounds, but those of other chimps. In a fascinating video, a young chimpanzee cares for a wound on his left knee with chewed stem bark and fresh leaves. In another clip, a young female licks her fingers and applies them to her mother's wound after an attack. Chimps helping others with their injuries – known as 'prosocial wound care' – has been documented before at other sites. But Dr Elodie Freymann, a primate researcher at the University of Oxford who led the observations in Uganda, said it is 'very rare' behaviour. 'The presence of prosocial care at this site demonstrates that this kind of prosocial healthcare is more widespread than we previously thought,' she told MailOnline. She continued: 'Our research helps illuminate the evolutionary roots of human medicine and healthcare systems. 'By documenting how chimpanzees identify and utilize medicinal plants and provide care to others, we gain insight into the cognitive and social foundations of human healthcare behaviours.' Humans and chimpanzees are both great apes (Hominidae) and chimps are our closest animal cousins, along with bonobos. Dr Freymann and colleagues studied two communities of chimps in the Budongo Forest that are known as Sonso and Waibira. Like all chimps, members of these communities are vulnerable to injuries, whether caused by fights and accidents, or as a result of human traps. About 40 per cent of individuals in Sonso have been seen with injuries from 'snares' – essentially a noose made of wire or rope that catch animals around the neck or body. After four months of observing each community, the scientists recorded 12 injuries in Sonso (all of which were likely caused by within-group conflicts) and five in Waibira (one female injured by a snare, and four males injured in fights). Overall, researchers documented 41 cases of care: seven cases of care for others (known as prosocial care) and 34 cases of self-care. Of the seven instances of prosocial care, the researchers found four cases of wound treatment, two cases of snare removal assistance, and one case where a chimp helped another with hygiene. Care wasn't preferentially given by, or provided to, one sex or age group, suggesting it's widespread among the species. On four occasions, care was given to genetically unrelated individuals – suggesting that there's no direct genetic advantage to it, but rather a social one. According to Dr Freymann, methods of applying the so-called 'first aid' can vary depending on the individual and their injury. 'Chimpanzee wound care encompasses several techniques – direct wound licking, which removes debris and potentially applies antimicrobial compounds in saliva; finger licking followed by wound pressing; leaf-dabbing; and chewing plant materials and applying them directly to wounds,' she said. 'All chimpanzees mentioned in our tables showed recovery from wounds, though of course we don't know what the outcome would have been had they not done anything about their injuries. 'We also documented hygiene behaviours, including the cleaning of genitals with leaves after mating and wiping the anus with leaves after defecation – practices that may help prevent infections. 'These behaviours add to the evidence from other sites that chimpanzees appear to recognize need or suffering in others and take deliberate action to alleviate it, even when there's no direct genetic advantage.' Dr Freymann and colleagues have already shown that sick and injured chimpanzees 'self-medicate' by eating medicinal plants at Budongo Forest. Chimps elsewhere have been observed helping other community members with medical problems – for example, the application of insects to wounds in Loango National Park, Gabon. But persistent presence of this behaviour in Budongo suggests medical care among chimps is much more widespread than we realised, and not confined to care for close relatives. The scientists call for more research into the social and ecological contexts in which care takes place, and which individuals give and receive care. One possibility is high risk of injury and death which Budongo chimps all face from snares could increase the likelihood that these chimps care for each other's wounds. The study, published in the journal Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, follows other demonstrations of altruistic behaviour in other animals. Anecdotal observations of various animal species in the wild including dolphins and elephants have documented helpful actions towards peers that have collapsed as a result of sickness, injury or death, including touching, grooming and nudging. Earlier in the year, another team of researchers published video of a mouse giving 'first aid' to an unconscious companion. In the adorable lab footage, one of the rodents opens an unconscious partner's mouth and pulls its tongue aside to clear its airway. Chimpanzees are among our closest living relatives The chimpanzee, as known as chimps, are a great ape species native to the savannah of tropical Africa. There are four confirmed subspecies and a potential fifth subspecies awaiting confirmation. It is closely related to the bonobo and part of the genus Pan, a distant relative to humans. They are covered in coarse black hair with a bare face, fingers, toes, palms of hands, and soles of the feet. On average an adult male weighs 88–154 lb, and an female 60–110 lb. They reach between three feet 11 in and four feet 11 inches in height. Gestation period is eight months and mothers will wean the infant for up to three years, keeping a close relationship for years after weaning. Almost all chimpanzee populations have been recorded using tools, modifying sticks, rocks, grass and leaves for hunting and foraging.
The National
14-05-2025
- Health
- The National
Chimpanzees use medicinal leaves to heal wounds, scientists discover
Chimpanzees use medicinal plants to clean their own wounds and those of others in their community, research has found. Scientists say the "surprising" findings, based on detailed observations of the primates in the forests of Uganda, could shed light on the social bonds that led to health care among human beings. The first author of the study, Dr Elodie Freymann, of the Institute of Human Sciences at the University of Oxford, said chimpanzees may also care for unrelated individuals 'to build future alliances that could benefit them'. 'But it is also possible that this is a form of altruism that we're seeing – chimpanzees helping others simply for the sake of helping. I don't think that's out of the question,' she told The National. In Uganda's Budongo Forest, Dr Freymann and her colleagues spent four months observing two communities of chimpanzees, the Sonso and Waibira. The researchers also pored through logbooks containing detailed observations stretching back decades, and surveyed other scientists who saw chimpanzees helping one another. Many of the animals suffered injuries caused by accidents, fights or snares, with about four in 10 of the Sonso chimpanzees having been hurt by snares. As well as recording dozens of cases of individuals carrying out care on themselves, the scientists witnessed seven instances of chimpanzees helping others, something known as prosocial care. Four cases of prosocial care involved animals helping individuals they were not related to. The animals licked wounds, which cleared out debris and may have promoted healing because of the antimicrobial properties of saliva. They also licked their fingers and pressed them to wounds, dabbed leaves on injuries and chewed plant materials before applying them to lesions. Once the researchers identified which plants the animals were using on their wounds, they went through scientific literature to see how these plants were traditionally used by people and whether they contained substances that are bioactive, meaning they have effects on organisms. 'We found that quite a few of them did, and interestingly several of these plants had uses and properties relevant to wound healing,' she said. All chimpanzees observed closely by the scientists recovered, although the researchers said the animals may have got better even if nothing had been done to the wounds. As well as wound treatment, prosocial care also involved removing snares and helping other chimpanzees with hygiene. Dr Freymann said that, until now, there were just 'a handful' of documented cases of chimpanzees showing prosocial care towards unrelated individuals. As a result, she was 'surprised' to read such accounts in the research site's logbook of unusual behaviour. 'Chimpanzees are incredibly intelligent and social animals, so why shouldn't they be capable of recognising that others in their community need external assistance, and then provide that care? Our study expands the list of wild chimpanzee sites where this kind of prosocial care occurs, showing that it is more widespread and less rare than we previously thought," she said. Humans can 'learn a lot about ourselves and our evolutionary origins' by observing wild chimpanzees, Dr Freymann said. The creatures are one of humanity's closest living relatives. 'They serve as interesting evolutionary models for understanding what our shared common ancestor may have been capable of,' she added. 'The fact that chimpanzees clearly possess the ability to take care of their own wounds, and the wounds of others in their community, suggests that the origins of our healthcare systems may be more ancient than we may have thought.' Knowledge about the behaviour of chimpanzees towards health care could also prove useful to efforts to protect the animals, the scientists said in their paper, published in Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution. 'As chimpanzee habitats become increasingly disrupted, and primate populations inch closer to extinction, understanding the socio-ecological pressures on chimpanzee healthcare behaviours could play a critical role in informing conservation strategies,' they wrote. Protecting the plants the animals need to keep themselves healthy, and tackling the use of snares, could protect chimpanzees 'from environmental and climatic disturbances that increasingly threaten their survival'. Another great ape, the orangutan, made headlines a year ago when it was revealed that an injured male on the Indonesian island of Sumatra chewed plant leaves with medicinal properties and applied the juice to an open wound under his eye. A researcher involved in that work, Isabelle Laumer, told media at the time that it was the first known case of a wild animal treating a wound with a medicinal plant. The scientists involved in the chimpanzee study worked from the Budongo Conservation Field Station, which Dr Freymann described as 'an incredible field site' in the middle of the forest. 'All around you there are birds singing, insects chirping and chimps calling,' she said. 'The trees are massive and many have giant buttresses that branch out along the forest floor. Every day, walking into the forest, you have the sense that anything could happen.' Dr Freymann said there were 'just so many unexplored areas' in the field of zoopharmacognosy, the term for animals self-medicating. She aims to carry out fieldwork in the Peruvian Amazon, where she will look for signs of animal self-medication in her new role as a post-doctoral fellow at Brown University, in the US.
