Humans experience a prolonged, painful adolescence that is unusual among most species. Evolutionary anthropologist Rachna Reddy studies chimpanzees and bonobos to understand why this life stage lasts so long and remains vulnerable. Shared traits across both species suggest the trait likely existed in their last common ancestor. Research draws on a decade of fieldwork at the Ngogo Chimpanzee Project in Uganda’s Kibale National Park, where the same chimp population has been followed since 1993. Chimpanzees live in fission-fusion societies with overlapping relationships and opportunities for solitude. During adolescence, juveniles shift away from caregivers toward new social bonds, making moment-to-moment decisions about approaching individuals and groups as puberty begins between ages 8 and 12.
"“When we share a trait with both [those] species, it's good evidence that our last common ancestor probably also had that trait,” said Reddy, a 2025-2026 fellow at the Harvard Radcliffe Institute. “Chimpanzees and bonobos in particular can really help us establish patterns that are universal in humans, so we can understand a bit more about ourselves.”"
"“involves a social reorientation away from caregivers and into new social bonds.”"
"Juvenile chimps follow their mothers or adoptive caregivers until puberty, which begins between ages 8 and 12. As they venture off on their own, they make moment-to-moment decisions about whether to approach other individuals or groups. In observations, the chimps might linger, whimp"
Read at Harvard Gazette
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