In humans, sexual behavior has a bigger purpose than just reproduction. It plays a role in social functions, from strengthening bonds to resolving conflicts. A new study has extended sexuality's ...

Within-group cooperation (i.e., among closely related individuals), is to varying degrees observed among a significant number of animal species. However, peaceful encounters and cooperation between ...

Psychologists from Durham University, UK, have observed the behavior of 90 sanctuary-living apes to establish whether bonobos were more likely than chimpanzees to comfort others in distress. The study ...

Some great apes realize when a human partner doesn’t know something and are capable of communicating information to them to change their behavior, a new study shows. Researchers from Johns Hopkins ...

Chimpanzees and bonobos are often thought to reflect two different sides of human nature—the conflict-ready chimpanzee versus the peaceful bonobo—but a new study publishing April 12 in the journal ...

Nonhuman primates like bonobos and chimpanzees might engage in same-sex sexual activities to strengthen bonds, particularly ...

Nothing brings a group of primates together, humans included, quite like a threat from outside. Bonobos are unique among primates because they do not kill other bonobos, even during conflicts with ...

A baby bonobo plays with heartwarming curiosity and endless charm.

The great apes are the closest living relatives to humans. We share over ninety-eight percent of our DNA with some species of these creatures, and it’s valuable to think of ourselves as being more ...

A lot of human society requires what’s called a “theory of mind"—the ability to infer the mental state of another person and adjust our actions based on what we expect they know and are thinking. We ...

People are constantly looking at the behavior of others and coming up with ideas about what might be going on in their heads. Now, a new study of bonobos adds to evidence that they might do the same ...

Great apes share human-like social circles, but chimpanzees and bonobos differ in how selectively they maintain close social ...