Chimps Would Cook Potatoes if Given the Chance, New Study Reveals

Chimps, apparently, would cook if given the choice. Scientists have conducted a series of experiments that reveal that not only do chimps have a taste for cooked food, but also have the cognitive abilities to actually cook.

The transition from eating raw to cooked food has long been viewed as an important evolutionary milestone, according to The Business Standard. It would have allowed our primitive ancestors to expand their diet and extract far more calories, reducing the amount of time required for foraging and chewing.

In this latest study, the researchers conducted a series of experiments where chimpanzees were given the opportunity to prepare food using a "cooking device." This device was actually a plastic lunchbox with a false bottom that transformed raw sweet potato placed inside by chimps into a cooked slice of a similar size.

So what did they find? It turns out the chimps chose to cook the potato nearly 90 percent of the time when given a straight choice. They were also nearly as enthusiastic about it when they had to wait a minute while it was "cooked" by the researcher, who shook the plastic box ten times.

"The logic is that if we see something in chimpanzees' behavior, our common ancestor may have possessed these traits as well," said Felix Warneken, co-author of the new study, in an interview with The Guardian. "If our closest evolutionary relative possesses these skills, it suggests that once early humans wearable to use and control fire they could also use it for cooking."

The latest study reveals that chimps can recognize cooking and prefer it over raw food, even if they have to wait. This is particularly important to note as researchers delve into the evolution of humans.

The findings were published in the journal The Royal Society B

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