There was a chimpanzee war in the 70s.
A lot has been written about the terrible things people do to each other. We act shocking, especially during armed conflicts. After the violence of World War II, anthropologist Raymond Dart presented the Killer Ape Theory. It states that most human evolution was driven by interpersonal conflicts. The theory was thinking. But it was far from embraced by the scientific community.
Wildlife has long been exhibiting levels of violence similar to humans. The distinction has always been a lack of malice. Theirs is the tragic irony that life eats life, the promise of nature that every act, no matter how cruel, serves a purpose. We never attributed war acts to animals, not even to our closest relatives, chimpanzees.
Jane Goodall spent years in the chimpanzee community at the Gombe Stream National Park. Initially, they evangelized their wonderful qualities, their affection to each other, kindness and maternal nature. But then she saw a stunning event that changed our understanding of primates.
In 1971, the North Kahama Alpha Mannetje, Leakey died. The new alpha was not accepted by two brothers, who started fighting with him. This caused the chimpanzee to split, with one group migrating north and the other to the south. Chimps chose loyalty based on whom they had the strongest social ties with.
Initially, everything was fine. The two groups have even interfaced occasionally. But as they spent more time apart from each other, tensions increased. In January 1974, the northern tribe formed a war party. All males came together and migrated to the other group.
Chaos broke out in the jungle.
They first killed a male chimpanzee named Godi. The event was attended by Jane Goodall and other scientists, who watched with disgity. It was the first time they saw chimpanzees attack another chimpanzee. In particular, the chimpanzees went to celebrate a feverish party after the murder. They jumped up and down and tore off branches. They flew up and down trees as their screams reflected through the jungle.
