Ape Gestures

Cat observes great apes in the wild and in the lab to crack the code of their gestural communication. We discussed the challenges and benefits of studying apes in the wild vs in the lab. Cat also shared how her lab identifies and studies ape gestures. It turns out that humans are pretty good at guessing what apes are trying to communicate with one another. Join us in this episode to learn more about the evolution of communication in great apes, and what we can learn from our closest relatives.

Guest

Cat Hobaiter: Cat Hobaiter grew up in Lebanon, England, and France. She has worked with primates in Uganda, and across Africa, for 15-years. She earned her PhD from the University of St Andrews in 2011, today her group here (the Wild Minds Lab) concentrates on long-term field studies of communication and cognition in wild African apes. She continues to spend around half the year in the field, and recently established new field sites in Uganda: the Bugoma Primate Conservation Project and in Guinea: the Moyen Bafing Chimpanzee Project. She likes good coffee and bad science-fiction.