Scientists Create 'Dictionary' of Chimp Gestures to Decode Secret Meanings

Humankind's closest relative — the chimpanzee — just got a little bit easier to understand.

A new study by a team of Scottish scientists revealed how chimpanzees communicate using hand and body movements. While it has long been known that certain chimpanzee gestures had corresponding meanings and intentions behind them, no one had been able to demystify the communication of chimps until now.

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Conducted by primatologists at the University of St. Andrews, the research team — led by Catherine Hobaiter and Richard Byrne, a lecturer and professor at the School of Psychology and Neuroscience, respectively — observed 80 chimpanzees in Uganda's Budongo Forest for 18 months to create a "dictionary" of chimpanzee gestures. Read more...

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