Chimpanzee Community Update
Introduction:
I’ve recently caught up with a good friend, who has been regularly visiting Taronga Zoo and has been able to provide me with some updates on the community. I will summarise and discuss this over a couple of posts - the first focussing on the males and their hierarchy.
This information, combined with the info from
Who’s Who in the Zoo (kindly relayed from
@WhistlingKite24); and the Q&A linked in Post #588 are the first decent updates we’ve had on Taronga’s chimpanzee community in years.
The Male Hierachy:
Six months on from the death of Lubutu, the community is still no closer to finding an alpha male. Samaki has shown little interest in taking on an alpha role and doesn’t network prolifically like Lubutu used to. During Lubutu’s reign, Samaki supported him by placing peace keeper in the group - breaking up disputes. Samaki still does this when required and maintains a high ranking. He often spends time with his offspring - Liwali and Cebele.
Furahi has shown ambition for the alpha role, but has very little support. Furahi is the most aggressive of the males and is feared by many of the females. At this stage, he’s only really liked by Kuma and Fumo. The others realise that Furahi would have a tyrannical style of leadership and are reluctant to allow him to become alpha. When Lubutu died, it was my initial assumption that Furahi would quickly assume the alpha role. However, his lack of popularity, combined with the fact he has not managed to seize the alpha role six months on, suggest it is unlikely to happen as things stand.
Shabani and Sule are the lowest ranking of the five adult males. Shabani is not popular. He’s only liked by Shiba, Kamili, Ceres and Naomi; and the latter three are all low ranking females. Ceres and Naomi like Shabani because he doesn’t display like the other males. Sule has become something of a loner since adolescence, which surprised me as he was always such friendly, interactive juvenile. He spends most of his time alone, or with his immediate family. He shows little to no interest in the infants and doesn’t network.
Shikamoo is currently showing the most promise for alpha. He networks extensively within the community and is well liked by several of the females - including Shiba and Kuma. Shikamoo suffered from digestive problems throughout early 2020, which apparently affected his ambition; but he appears to have recovered and now we might see a change. Shikamoo likes all the infants - but is especially close to his sons, Fumo and Sudi. He is to date the only adult male that’s shows interest in Safiri and is likely her sire based on these observations.
Fumo is almost seven years old. He’s entered adolescence and is starting to enter the male hierarchy. He’s significantly larger than Sudi and Liwali, who are a year younger. Fumo is very interactive with the other members of the community and is fascinated with the infants - Cebele and Safiri. As a result, he has a lot of interactions with their mothers, Ceres and Shiba. While he’s not old enough to make a play for the alpha role, Fumo could be crucial in supporting one of the adult males as their right hand man.
Conclusion:
Fumo is closest to Furahi and Shikamoo, so my money is on an alliance between Furahi (alpha) and Fumo (beta); or Shikamoo (alpha) and Fumo (beta). Shikamoo is the most popular of the males amongst the females (including the high ranking females), which combined with his ambition and networking make him the most likely contender in my opinion. Shikamoo could arguably assume the alpha role on this alone, but support from Fumo would surely cement his position and/or get him there faster.
