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Funky monkeys: Chimps spotted making a 'conga line'

In what may be a first, researchers observe "co-synced rhythmic entrainment between two great apes in a naturalistic environment." Never mind bedtime, Bonzo. Let's boogie.

Rae Hodge Former senior editor
Rae Hodge was a senior editor at CNET. She led CNET's coverage of privacy and cybersecurity tools from July 2019 to January 2023. As a data-driven investigative journalist on the software and services team, she reviewed VPNs, password managers, antivirus software, anti-surveillance methods and ethics in tech. Prior to joining CNET in 2019, Rae spent nearly a decade covering politics and protests for the AP, NPR, the BBC and other local and international outlets.
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monkey-dance

Monkeys bust a move. 

 University of Warwick

A dancing monkey trained by humans is no surprise to the scientific community. But for what may be the first time, psychologists have observed two chimpanzees cutting a rug without human prompting, in closely synchronized movement that resembled a conga line. 

"Here, we present the first evidence for co-synced rhythmic entrainment between two great apes in a naturalistic environment," University of Warwick researchers wrote in an article published Wednesday in the journal Scientific Reports.

This was no simple two-step. The researchers found that the levels of motor coordination, synchronization and rhythm between the two female chimpanzees matched the levels of rhythm shown by orchestra players who perform together.

"Dance is an icon of human expression. Despite astounding diversity around the world's cultures and dazzling abundance of reminiscent animal systems, the evolution of dance in the human clade remains obscure," Adriano Lameira, one of the University of Warwick researchers, said in a statement. 

The researchers say this evidence of synced and rhythmic movement in great apes could help scientists discover the origins of human dance.