Overview

This remarkable primate with the curious name is challenging established views on human evolution. The bonobo, least known of the great apes, is a female-centered, egalitarian species that has been dubbed the ""make-love-not-war"" primate by specialists. In bonobo society, females form alliances to intimidate males, sexual behavior (in virtually every partner combination) replaces aggression and serves many social functions, and unrelated groups mingle instead of fighting. The species's most striking achievement is not tool use or warfare but sensitivity to others. In the first book to combine and compare data from captivity and the field, Frans de Waal, a world-renowned primatologist, and Frans Lanting, an internationally acclaimed wildlife photographer, present the most up-to-date perspective available on the bonobo. Focusing on social organization, de Waal compares the bonobo with its better-known relative, the chimpanzee. The bonobo's relatively nonviolent behavior and the tendency for females to dominate males confront the evolutionary models derived from observing the chimpanzee's male power politics, cooperative hunting, and intergroup warfare. Further, the bonobo's frequent, imaginative sexual contacts, along with its low reproduction rate, belie any notion that the sole natural purpose of sex is procreation. Humans share over 98 percent of their genetic material with the bonobo and the chimpanzee. Is it possible that the peaceable bonobo has retained traits of our common ancestor that we find hard to recognize in ourselves? Eight superb full-color photo essays offer a rare view of the bonobo in its native habitat in the rain forests of Zaire as well as in zoos and research facilities. Additional photographs and highlighted interviews with leading bonobo experts complement the text. This book points the way to viable alternatives to male-based models of human evolution and will add considerably to debates on the origin of our species. Anyone interested in primates, gender issues, evolutionary psychology, and exceptional wildlife photography will find a fascinating companion in Bonobo: The Forgotten Ape.

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9780520216518

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Reviews

Introduce[s] the popular audience to this long-lost cousin of humanity. And what a fine introduction it is! De Waal . . . writes in a conversational style that shows respect for the animals as well as real affection. . . . Lanting's photographs, many from the field, highlight some of de Waal's major points: bonobos not only look like people, they often act like people and form humanlike relationships. . . . Bonobo is a delightful romp in the world of another species and a pleasant consciousness-raising session about our closest evolutionary relatives. * Sciences * This book by de Waal and Lanting should dispel the notion that the bonobo has been forgotten by primatologists. It will have great appeal to a wide readership, including those interested in apes and human evolution, natural history, and behavioral ecology. Students in comparative psychology courses, primatology, and physical anthropology will want to hang on to this attractive book after the final exam. * American Anthropologist * Bonobo is a book that is enjoyable for both the eye and the mind. Simply leafing through the book to admire the breathtaking photography and the evocative visages may be all it takes to convince a reader to buy this book. Those looking for more than a collection of lovely images may still find this book hard to resist, depending on what type and level of information they are seeking. . . . It is an extremely readable presentation of the current state of research and theory regarding the behavior and psychology of the bonobo (Pan paniscus)-a species that not only bears an impressive resemblance to humans but is uniquely captivating in its own right. * BioScience * This impressive coffee-table catalogue of bonobo life is worth the purchase price for Frans Lanting's remarkable photos alone. However, for the interested lay reader and the experienced primatologist alike, the text by Frans de Waal is almost as compelling as the pictures. * Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute * This wonderful book by a preeminent primatologist does much to introduce the general reader to one of our closest relatives. Covering studies undertaken both in captivity and in the species' natural habitat in Zaire, de Waal's riveting account compares bonobo behavior with that of the better-known chimpanzee and with humans. Complemented by Frans Lanting's coffee-table-quality photographs of wild and captive bonobos, the chapters cover the discovery of the bonobo (in 1929), its habitat and how it shaped the species' behavior, and the fears for the future of wild bonobos in an unstable region. * Booklist * Exciting, amusing, and beautiful. * International Journal of Primatology * In many respects the book deserves recommendation. Frans de Waal, well-known from previous books on chimpanzee, human, and other mammalian societies, ensures a sound and carefully referenced scientific background, and Frans Lanting, known to the readers of National Geographic and Life, has produced remarkable photographs. * Current Anthropology * A fascinating, delightfully successful treatment of an arresting creature. * Kirkus Reviews * The bonobos are best known as the sexy chimpanzees. Their most striking idiosyncrasy is their readiness to use sex as a social lubricant. Any tension within a bonobo group is normally resolved by a quick orgy, in which they all have sex with one another, in all positions and combinations. Yet, as Frans de Waal explains in the elegant photo-essay Bonobo: The Forgotten Ape, this is just one way in which they diverge markedly from the other chimpanzees. * New York Times *

Most people have never even heard of the bonobo, the fourth ape. Yet it is one of our closest relatives and eerily mirrors humans in many different ways. Scientists are only just beginning to explore the details of its natural history, but it has already been dubbed the 'make-love-not-war' primate because of its peaceful nature and extraordinary sensitivity towards others. This wonderful book is the first popular profile of the endangered bonobo ever written. Incredibly comprehensive, it is illustrated in both colour and black and white, with photographs taken in the remote rainforests of Zaire as well as in the few zoos with captive populations. (Kirkus UK)

Exciting, amusing, and beautiful. --Alison Jolly, International Journal of Primatology

Author Information

Frans de Waal is C. H. Candler Professor of Psychology, Emory University, and Director of Living Links, Yerkes Primate Center. He is the author of several books, including Chimpanzee Politics (1982) and Good Natured: The Origins of Right and Wrong in Humans and Other Animals(1996). Frans Lanting is one of the world's leading nature photographers and the recipient of many prestigious awards. His work appears regularly in National Geographic, Life, and other magazines. His books include Okavango: Africa's Last Eden (1993), Madagascar: A World out of Time (1990), and Forgotten Edens (1993).

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