The Last Great Ape

The bonobos are a tribe of primates secluded in a remote section of the Congo's tropical rainforest. Unlike their cousins the chimpanzees, the bonobos are a peaceful, female-dominated, highly intelligent, and social species capable of forming lifelong friendships. (One peculiar trait they share is a propensity towards casual sex, an act performed almost as a greeting.) The bonobo population numbered about 55,000 and the apes were just beginning to attract the serious attention of researchers when a civil war broke out in Central Africa in 1998, and the bonobos were caught in the crossfire—used for bush meat, and also poached to finance armies. Years later, after an uneasy peace, researchers returned to the forest, fearing that the bonobos were extinct. Although the war was devastating, some bonobos survived, and pregnancies give hope for future generations (still, their numbers have been roughly cut in half). This NOVA documentary combines archival and contemporary on-location footage with interviews as it follows the efforts of researchers to chart the similarities and differences between bonobos and humans, with an eye toward what the findings might teach us about human nature. Of course, while our closest relatives on the evolutionary ladder provide insights into humankind, we will only learn from them if man stays out of their way, allowing them to survive and prosper in their native habitats. With the caveat that the program does contain some scenes of bonobo sex, this is highly recommended. Aud: H, C, P. (S. Rees)