Chimpanzees want to fit in with the popular kids, just like humans do researchers say chimps will change their behavior to match what others are doing.

A study in the journal Current Biology points to a specific type of behavior in these apes called the grooming handclasp. Its exactly what it sounds like: Two animals engaged in the social interaction of grooming will clasp one anothers hands. But the exact form this rare chimp handshake varies among groups, with some gripping each others palms and the others gripping wrists depending on what group they were in. Scientists studying the behavior in Zambia saidits a group-level cultural tradition in chimpanzees rather than one passed down from mothers to their young.

Read: What Monkey Brains and Social Behavior Tell Us About Human Minds

Grooming itself is a social behavior that does more than clean the chimps: It is also a bonding experience, a way to relax and an action that defers to the hierarchy of the chimp community. And only some groups of these apes perform the handclasp. The University of St. Andrews explained that because it varies among groups as opposed to chimpanzee families, this indicates that, like humans, chimpanzees have the capacity and motivation to learn from each other and fine tune their learned behavior such that it matches with the group norm.

A behavior passed down through a family line does not explain why chimps within one group will clasp hands in one way and chimps in another will clasp in another.

Some chimpanzees clasp hands while grooming, a behavior they acquire in groups rather than learn from their families. The behaviors origin shows chimps can form and adhere to cultures just like humans. Photo: University of St. Andrews

It is hard to imagine how any genetic or environmental influences could have shaped the group-specific preferences that we observed, lead author Edwin van Leeuwen said in the statement. Within the group chimpanzees converged on one particular variant of clasping. This indicates a certain willingness to match each others styles.

The study offers a glimpse into the minds of chimps, specifically whether they can form a culture and cultural traditions, which is a controversial topic. The university said becausechimpanzees can form a social tradition like a grooming handclasp behavior outside of their family unit,they are more closely mimicking human culture than previously thought.

Read: Jungle Falls Silent After Howler Monkey Disease Epidemic

Although chimpanzees are different from humans in many ways, they are similar in others. For one, the genetic differences between the species are miniscule: Humans and chimps share almost 99 percent of their DNA. Chimpanzees can use tools to get a job done, and its possible that they can live as long as humans in the wild recent research has shown if disease, food shortages, predators or other hazards dont get in the way, a chimpanzee can live almost 33 years. Thats right within the range of life expectancy for those who have similar lifestyles to apes, the human hunter-gatherers still left in the world. Those people live27 to 37 years.

Understanding the relationship between humans and chimpanzees isnt just a point of interest. It can also help scientists understand how humans evolved and, in the case of life expectancy, how different conditions changed mortality rates.

Follow this link:
Apes Have Social Traditions Just Like Humans, Chimp Behavior Shows - International Business Times