Chimps and Non-Human Primates Don't Use Tools More Often During Food Scarcity

Scientists have made some surprising findings among chimpanzees. It turns out that when food is scarce, tool use among non-human primates doesn't increase. This seems to indicate that the driving force behind tool use is ecological opportunity and that the environment shapes the development of culture.

Tools can be a huge help when it comes to getting what you need to survive. And yet it seems as if opportunity rather than necessity is the driving cause behind tool use. In order to better understand the way non-human primates use tools, the scientists reviewed studies on two use among three habitual tool-using primates: chimpanzees, orangutans and bearded capuchins.

Non-human primates can use tools in a range of situations. They use stones to crack open nuts and sticks to harvest army ants, prey on insects or extract seeds from fruits.

Yet against expectations, the scientists found that tool use did not increase in times when food was scarce. Instead, tool use was determined by ecological opportunity with calorie-rich but hard-to-reach foodstuffs, such as nuts and honey, as an incentive.

"By ecological opportunity, we mean the likelihood of encountering tool materials and resources whose exploitation requires the use of tools," said Kathelijne Koops, one of the researchers, in a news release. "We showed that these ecological opportunities influence of tool use. The resources extracted using tools, such as nuts and honey, are among the richest in primate habitats. Hence, the extraction pays off, and not just during times of food scarcity."

The findings reveal a bit more about tool use and shows a bit more about primate culture. It seems as if the local environment exerts a powerful influence on tool use and, in consequence culture.

The findings are published in the journal Biology Letters.