Obsessed with the Quest

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Stories of dangerous expeditions, told first-hand by adventuring, tenacious scientists.

Stories of dangerous expeditions with narrow escapes, told first-hand by the adventuring, tenacious scientists and naturalists themselves as they pursue breakthroughs in research.

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Obsessed with the Quest: Inside the Minds of Chimpanzees

Inside the Minds of Chimpanzees

BBC Radio 4 - Obsessed with the Quest, Inside the Minds of Chimpanzees

Catherine Hobaiter pursues a quest to understand what it means to be a chimpanzee.

Primatologist Catherine Hobaiter pursues her continuing, multi-decadal quest to understand what it means to be a chimpanzee.

Primatologist Catherine Hobaiter has spent more of her adult life in the rain forests of Uganda, with family bands of chimpanzees, than she has with her own human family members. For more than 20 years now she has spent 6 months every year at a remote field station, getting up before dawn every day to observe and collect behavioural data on family bands of chimps as they wake up and go about their daily lives. What is she trying to find out, that has gripped her for so long? It turns out that life in a chimpanzee troupe is every bit as gripping as a soap opera. We hear about Nambi - a high status female and the family matriarch who, in controlling the lives and social status of her offspring, has been the quintessential helicopter parent, actively intervening to help her layabout son, Musa, climb up the rungs of the male hierarchy. And about the tragic fate of Lola - a young female who becomes caught up in what seems to be a tragic case of miscommunication. Maintaining her scientific objectivity, Catherine can only look on as Lola tries to hide behind her for protection, as she is beaten by an older male, later dying of the resulting injuries. But there are many more moments of beauty, revelation and the joy of discovery, as Catherine pursues her continuing, multi-decadal quest to understand what it means to be a chimpanzee.

Produced by Diane Hope

(Image: Chimpanzees in Kibale National Park. Credit: Yannick Tylle/Getty Images)

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Obsessed with the Quest

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