However, the chimps did not exhibit normal hunting behavior, according to Pika. Chimps do sometimes hunt animals such as monkeys, and they may have taken the opportunity to kill the small gorillas for food. Pika can only speculate on why these unprecedented attacks occurred.
The researchers published their findings Monday (July 19) in the journal Scientific Reports. The researchers do not know whether or not the second incident in December involved a different group of gorillas. The February encounter lasted 52 minutes, and the gorillas were forced to retreat without their infant. "But then, we heard chest beats, a display characteristic for gorillas, and realized that the chimpanzees had encountered a group of five gorillas." Within the superfamily Hominoidea is the family Hominidae which are colloquially known as the great apes. Southern, a doctoral student at Osnabrück University, said in a statement. "At first, we only noticed screams of chimpanzees and thought we were observing a typical encounter between individuals of neighboring chimpanzee communities," first author Lara M. Both HIVs are the result of multiple cross-species transmissions of simian. Here, we describe the origins and evolution of these viruses, and the circumstances that led to the AIDS pandemic. The chimps were returning from a territory patrol when the first attack occurred. Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) of humans is caused by two lentiviruses, human immunodeficiency viruses types 1 and 2 (HIV-1 and HIV-2). The research team was following the chimpanzees responsible for the gorilla killings as part of a long-term study into chimp behavior in Gabon's Loango National Park. Chimps, however, aggressively defend their territories against other chimpanzees and are known to kill members of rival chimp groups. The two ape species typically avoid one another, and even feed on the same fruit trees, without conflict, according to Pika. Chimpanzees and gorillas normally coexist peacefully where their ranges overlap in the rainforests of Central Africa.
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