Just Gal Pals! The Differential Treatment of Sexual Behavior Among Nonhuman Great Apes

There is a tendency in primatology to separate out sexual and sociosexual behaviors, roughly along the lines of reproductive and non-reproductive sexual behavior. Primatology perpetuates a heteronormative distinction that penetrative copulation between males and females has reproductive-but not social-value, while all sexual behaviors between same-sex pairs must be motivated by a distant social goal. Here, we interrogate these assumptions, and posit that there is scientific merit in examining social relationships across all forms of sexual behavior, and in examining proximate sexual motivations beyond heterosexual pairings. We use bonobos (bilia) as a case study, as they frequently engage in same-sex sexual behavior, and we make suggestions for expanding this approach to other species. We caution against overinterpreting nonhuman sexual behavior in ways that minimize the importance of socio-cultural experiences on human gender and sexuality; and we highlight the importance of broadening our ways of knowing about the sexuality of other species for their own sake. Finally, we conclude with some considerations of how queer perspectives on primate behavior can lead to new approaches, paralleling the role of feminist perspectives in primatology.