Chimpanzees are the most Proficient Tool Users in the Wild

Although there are many industrious tool-users in the natural world, the only animals with enough brainpower to develop and improve the tools they make have long been thought to be humans. Adding innovative new features, such as a wheel or an engine, to previous designs, was one of those traits some scientists believed made us unique. Wild chimpanzees commonly use sticks to fish for termites, ants or honey. This ability seems to be socially transmitted to juveniles by their mothers across generations. In a natural environment, the limited visibility of this behavior with regards to the extent of stick's insertion and about the success or failure in fishing hinders the study of the underlying learning processes. Termites are one of chimpanzees' favourite foods – but how to reach the creatures deep within their mounds presents quite a problem. A chimp named David Greybeard picked up a twig and stripped the leaves off of it. Then he stuck the twig into one of the holes in the termite mound, left it there for a moment, and slowly pulled it out. As termites clung to the twig, David picked them off with his lips and scrunched them. He was using the stem as a tool to ‘fish’ for insects. This was modification of an object for a specific purpose, the making of a crude - but effective - tool. The chimps use one short stick to penetrate the aboveground mounds and then a "fishing probe" to extract the termites. For subterranean nests the chimps use their feet to force a larger "puncturing stick" into the earth, drilling holes into termite chambers, and then a separate fishing probe to harvest the insects. Other scientists have discovered that chimpanzees use and make other tools as well. Some chimps take a stick to scrape out food, just like a person might use a spoon to scoop out a tasty treat. Other chimps have learned to use leaves to help them drink. Chimpanzees sometimes can't reach water that has formed in hollows high up inside trees. Chimpanzees have also been seen using tools such as stone hammers to chop up and reduce food into smaller bite-sized portions. In most cases, the chimpanzees carried out four or more steps to manufacture spears for hunting. In all but one of the cases, chimps broke off a living branch to make their tool. They would then trim the side branches and leaves.