Apes save tools for future use.

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Science
• Primatology
• Evolutionary Psychology

Background:

• Future planning is a complex cognitive ability, crucial for survival and adaptation.
• The evolutionary origins of future planning, particularly in non-human primates, remain a subject of debate.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the capacity for future planning in great apes (bonobos and orangutans).
• To determine if precursor skills for future planning existed before the divergence of extant great ape species.

Main Methods:

• Bonobos and orangutans were tested on their ability to select, transport, and save appropriate tools for later use.
• Experiments involved delays of 1 hour and 14 hours between tool collection and usage.
• A control experiment assessed if tool selection was dependent on the immediate presence of the apparatus.

Main Results:

• Both bonobos and orangutans successfully selected, transported, and saved tools for future use at rates significantly above baseline.
• The planning behavior was observed across different delay intervals, including a 14-hour delay.
• The ability to plan was not contingent on the immediate visibility of the task apparatus.

Conclusions:

• Great apes possess sophisticated future planning capabilities, challenging the notion that this is a uniquely human trait.
• The findings indicate that the cognitive precursors for future planning evolved in the common ancestor of great apes over 14 million years ago.