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Fellatio among male sanctuary-living chimpanzees during a period of social tension

Brooker, Jake S.; Webb, Christine E.; Clay, Zanna

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Authors

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Jake Brooker jake.s.brooker@durham.ac.uk
Post Doctoral Research Associate

Christine E. Webb

Zanna Clay



Abstract

Same-sex sexual behaviour has been documented across the animal kingdom, and is thought to reflect and enhance dyadic cooperation and tolerance. For instance, same-sex fellatio — the reception of a partner’s penis into another’s mouth — has been reported in several mammalian species other than humans. Although same-sex sexual behaviour is observed in our close relatives, the chimpanzees, fellatio appears to be very rare — as yet there are no published reports clearly documenting its occurrence. At Chimfunshi Wildlife Orphanage in Zambia, we observed an instance of fellatio occurring during a post-conflict period between two adult male chimpanzees (born and mother-reared at the sanctuary) where one of the males was the victim. We discuss this event with respect to the putative functions of homosexual behaviour in great apes. Given its rarity in chimpanzees, this fellatio between adult males also highlights the apparent behavioural flexibility present in our close relatives.

Citation

Brooker, J. S., Webb, C. E., & Clay, Z. (2020). Fellatio among male sanctuary-living chimpanzees during a period of social tension. Behaviour, 1-11. https://doi.org/10.1163/1568539x-bja10053

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date Nov 30, 2020
Online Publication Date Dec 21, 2020
Publication Date 2020
Deposit Date Dec 16, 2020
Publicly Available Date Mar 29, 2024
Journal Behaviour
Print ISSN 0005-7959
Electronic ISSN 1568-539X
Publisher Brill Academic Publishers
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Pages 1-11
DOI https://doi.org/10.1163/1568539x-bja10053

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