Sleeping Around: Social and Ecological Determinants of Wild Chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) Sleeping Site Selection at Gombe National Park, Tanzania

Sleep is a universal factor in the health of almost every animal on Earth. To maximize and regulate their sleep while staying safe from external agents, animals of different taxa evolved different ecological and behavioral adaptations that allowed for deeper and longer sleeping bouts. In this study, I investigate how the nesting behavior of wild eastern chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii) at Gombe National Park, Tanzania relates to the risk of intergroup and intragroup aggression. Using spatial mapping (ArcGIS and GeoDa) and statistical tools, I found that overall, chimpanzees preferentially nest in the center of their home range, away from neighboring groups and border areas, due to evolutionary histories of predation and risk of intergroup aggression. Female chimpanzees do not modify their nesting behavior based on inter or intragroup competition. However, males nest in larger groups in areas of home range overlap due to territorial defense, parental effort, and mate guarding.

Author

• Auerswald, Katherine

Language

• en

Keyword

• Nesting
• GIS
• Sleep
• Gombe
• Chimpanzee
• Competition

Date created

• 2022

Type of Work

• Master's Thesis

License

• All rights reserved

Rights statement

• In Copyright

GW Unit

• Anthropology

Degree

• M.S.

Advisor

• Murray, Carson

Persistent URL

•  https://scholarspace.library.gwu.edu/etd/9019s339f