Browsing by Author "Pascual-Garrido, Alejandra"
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- Archaeology of the Perishable Ecological Constraints and Cultural Variants in Chimpanzee Termite FishingPublication . Pascual-Garrido, Alejandra; Almeida-Warren, KatarinaSelection and transport of materials for tools is ubiquitous throughout our species' evolutionary history. Yet our understanding of early human material culture is heavily skewed toward lithic technology. This poses challenges when reconstructing our technical origins, as organic raw materials, especially plants, likely played a significant role despite their absence from the record until 300 kya. Studies of plant-tool use by living apes can serve as a proxy to reconstruct such aspects of human behavior. Employing archaeological methods, we investigated raw material procurement for termite-fishing tools by three chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii) populations in Tanzania: Gombe, Issa, and Mahale. All communities exploited plant sources from the immediate vicinity of termite mounds, as well as farther away, and reused them. However, at Issa, more parts were sourced per plant, with the number of removals decreasing as distance from the mound increased. These disparities are likely caused by environmental differences. Issa apes might try to minimize transport costs in what is a comparably more open and drier habitat with fewer suitable sources available near mounds. Despite similar raw material types being available, Issa and Mahale chimpanzees exclusively used bark for tool manufacture, while at Gombe, various materials were employed; these differences may reflect cultural variants. Our study highlights how environmental and cultural factors shape chimpanzee technology and identifies similarities to raw material selection processes inferred for Oldowan tool users. The archaeology of the perishable, even if at its infancy, is providing a new framework for reconstructing archaeologically invisible aspects of early human behavior and our own technological origins.
- Engineering skills in the manufacture of tools by wild chimpanzeesPublication . Pascual-Garrido, Alejandra; Carvalho, Susana; Mjungu, Deus; Schulz-Kornas, Ellen; Casteren, Adam vanPhysical evidence of early hominin perishable tools is scarce. However, it is reasonable to assume the mechanical constraints surrounding tool use and manufacture have remained somewhat constant. Using a functional framework to understand the technical capabilities of extant hominoid tool users presents a novel approach to predict the perishable tool-using capabilities of our earliest relatives. We investigated the structural and mechanical properties of plant materials used by wild chimpanzees to make termite fishing probes. Materials sourced from plant species extensively used by chimpanzees produced implements of greater flexibility than those constructed from plants never selected by chimpanzees. This pattern was also reflected in chimpanzee tool species preferences, with preferred plant species producing highly flexible implements. Implement flexibility aligns with functional predictions and likely facilitates termite attachment. Our findings provide insights into the technical skills associated with perishable artefact-making and raise questions about how this knowledge is learnt and culturally transmitted.