Up Close and Personal

Kanzi is perhaps one of the world's most well-known apes, and considered by many it's "Superstar" for his ability to communicate with humans.

Kanzi is a bonobo ape, born October 28, 1980 in the Yerkes Regional Primate Research Center at Georgia State University, Atlanta, and now lives at The Great Ape Trust in Des Moines, Iowa.



Kanzi the Superstar

Kanzi is the first ape to acquire language as humans do--that is by being exposed to language.  Kanzi is able to carry on conversations with his trainers, creating new sentences and not just answering "memorized" responses.



Kanzi enjoys onions, cherries, and orange soda.  He likes puzzles, playing a game of chase, and his favorite toy is a green ball.  Kanzi also is a skilled toolmaker, displaying his ability to solve problems with intellect and mechanical skill.

Kanzi "Mugs" For the Camera



Kanzi is a rare and ground-breaking primate who is changing how we look at intellect, communication, and what it means to be human.  In Swahili Kanzi's name means "treasure."

Great Ape Trust | Bonobos, Orangutans and the Study of Ape Language, Tools and Intelligence. Web. 02 Jan. 2011. http://www.greatapetrust.org/.

"Great Ape Trust | Meet Our Apes, Bonobos, Oragutans, Kanzi, Panbanisha, Elikya, Teco, Nyota, Maisha, Matata, Rocky, Allie." Great Ape Trust | Bonobos, Orangutans and the Study of Ape Language, Tools and Intelligence. Web. 02 Jan. 2011. http://www.greatapetrust.org/about-the-trust/meet-our-apes/.

"The My Hero Project - Dr. Sue Savage-Rumbaugh." The MY HERO Project. Web. 23 Jan. 2011. http://myhero.com/go/hero.asp?hero=sue_savage_rumbaugh.

Kanzi's Family Tree

Matata, Kanzi's Mother

Kanzi was born to Lorel in Atlanta.  Within half an hour of his birth, he was taken by another female "Matata" while Lorel slept.  Matata already had an infant herself named Akili, but she refused to give Kanzi back to Lorel and raised Kanzi as her own.

Matata and Kanzi were transferred to Georgia to the Language Research Center where they encountered Dr. Sue Savage Rumbaugh.  Lorel and Akili were transferred to the San Diego Zoo.



Elikya, Kanzi's Mate

 In 2005 Kanzi was moved to the Great Ape Trust, where his family joined him and flourished.  Matata, her daughters Panbanisha and Elikya, and her son Maisha joined the Trust.   Panbanisha gave birth to Nyota, a male.

In 2010 Kanzi became the father of Teco, a male bonobo.  Teco's mother is Elikya.



Teco, Kanzi's Son

Kanzi, Panbanisha, Maisha, Nyota, Elikya, and Baby Teco all live together in Des Moines at the Great Ape Trust, along with their matriarch Matata.

To find out more about Kanzi's family and the other residents of the Great Ape Trust, click on this link:  http://www.greatapetrust.org/about-the-trust/meet-our-apes/.   

"Great Ape Trust | Meet Our Apes, Bonobos, Oragutans, Kanzi, Panbanisha, Elikya, Teco, Nyota, Maisha, Matata, Rocky, Allie." Great Ape Trust | Bonobos, Orangutans and the Study of Ape Language, Tools and Intelligence. Web. 02 Jan. 2011. <http://www.greatapetrust.org/about-the-trust/meet-our-apes/>.

Where The Apes Are

140 Acres of Property

 In May of 2003 the city of Des Moines gave the newly formed Great Ape Trust 140 acres of undeveloped property in the southeast part of the city.

Construction began in June 2004, and the first ape residents arrived that September.

Ted Townsend, Founder

Founded by Ted Townsend, The Great Ape Trust's mission is to understand language, how culture develops, how "a brain creates a mind," and how humans and primates use and create tools--both physical and intellectual--to help their daily lives.

This scientific facility also is dedicated to preserving the endangered great apes in their natural habitats.

Several animal refugee parks have four-season climates.  The Great Ape Trust has indoor facilities that cool the inhabitants in summer and warm them in winter. 



A Scientific Research Facility

The facility now houses a colony of six bonobos and six orangutans.  A team of scientists share their lives and work with the primates, as well as working with scientists and scholars from Iowa State University, Simpson College, and around the world.

The Great Ape Trust is located southeast of Des Moines, east of Lake Easter.


Great Ape Trust | Bonobos, Orangutans and the Study of Ape Language, Tools and Intelligence. Web. 02 Jan. 2011. http://www.greatapetrust.org/about-the-trust/history>

Kanzi's Teacher, Mentor, and Friend

Dr. Sue

Dr. Sue Savage-Rumbaugh is a world-known scientist.  Born in 1946, "Dr. Sue" graduated from Missouri State University in Springfield, Missouri, in 1970, majoring in psychology.

Intriqued by the development of thinking in children, Dr. Sue discovered the "Chimp Farm," at the University of Oklahoma.  There, at the Institute for Primate Studies, research was being done on whether language is something that only humans can acquire.

Reading Together

Dr. Sue received a masters degree, followed by a doctorate from the University of Oklahoma.   She then joined the Language Research Center in Atlanta, Georgia, at Georgia State University.

For thirty years Dr. Sue studied language, especially the ability of the bonobo great apes to acquire language, and this is how she met Kanzi.

Dr. Sue and Kanzi

Since then they have been nearly inseparable, with Dr. Sue learning even more from Kanzi than he has learned from her.

In 2005 both Dr. Sue and Kanzi came to the Great Ape Trust in Des Moines, Iowa.  Several other bonobos have joined Kanzi.

Dr. Sue has spent nearly 24 hours a day living and working with the family of bonobos at the Great Ape Trust as the Director of Bonobo Research.

Dr. Sue has published many articles and books, as well as given speeches about her work with Kanzi.

To find out more about Kanzi and Dr. Sue, click on this link:  http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/bonobos/kanzi.html.

"Great Ape Trust | Scientists' Biographies, Fields, Savage-Rumbaugh, Rumbaugh, Swartz, Schweller, Pedersen, Bios, Halgren, Evans." Great Ape Trust | Bonobos, Orangutans and the Study of Ape Language, Tools and Intelligence. Web. 23 Jan. 2011. http://www.greatapetrust.org/science/scientists-biographies/sue-savage-rumbaugh.

"Ape Language Pioneer Savage-Rumbaugh Receives Honorary Ph.D. from Alma Mater." EurekAlert! - Science News. Web. 23 Jan. 2011. http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2008-05/gato-alp052708.php.

"The My Hero Project - Dr. Sue Savage-Rumbaugh." The MY HERO Project. Web. 23 Jan. 2011. http://myhero.com/go/hero.asp?hero=sue_savage_rumbaugh.

The Moment History Changed

Dr. Sue Works with Lexigrams

Scientists had been trying to develop language skills in Kanzi's adopted mother, Matata.  When Kanzi was six months old, Kanzi came with Matata for one of their sessions.

"Without warning, Kanzi emitted an electrifying scream and propelled himself from Matata's arms to mine.  It was a sign of things to come."  This is how Dr. Sue Savage-Rumbaugh describes the event that started thirty-year relationhip with Kanzi.



Learning Words

Dr. Sue continued to work with Matata, and Kanzi continued to tag along to the sessions.  Kanzi was a disruption, stealing Matata's treats and jumping on her head.  Dr. Sue's work with Matata on the lexigram produced disapointing results.

One day Kanzi could not find Matata and became upset, searching for her everywhere.  Surprisingly, Kanzi started to use the lexigram, touching "raisin" and "peanut."  The scientists gave him raisins and peanuts.

Then Kanzi touched "melon" and "go," and scientists gave him a melon and took him outside.  Scientists were amazed that Kanzi had been learning words as he watched the work with Matata.

What was different about Kanzi?  He had learned indirectly by watching Matata, not by being taught directly with a reward system.  Kanzi learned like a human child does.

To find out more about how Kanzi communicates, click on this link:  http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5503685.

"The My Hero Project - Dr. Sue Savage-Rumbaugh." The MY HERO Project. Web. 23 Jan. 2011. http://myhero.com/go/hero.asp?hero=sue_savage_rumbaugh. 

Communicating With Lexigrams

Kanzi Reading Lexigrams

To build on Kanzi's interest in language, Dr. Sue developed a new method for working with him.  She created stations in the dense woods outside the Great Ape Trust.  Kanzi liked exploring the woods and looking for food.
  
As Kanzi searched the woods for his favorite food and treats, he carried a cardboard version of his keyboard.  This enabled him to point to his choices.

Reading Together


This more natural method of learning has worked well with Kanzi, who now has a vocabulary of several thousand words.  Kanzi is able to create his own unique sentences, communicating his needs and wants to the scientists he lives and works with.

To see a video about how Kanzi uses lexigrams, click on this link:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wRM7vTrIIis.

Savage-Rumbaugh, E. Sue, and Roger Lewin. Kanzi: the Ape at the Brink of the Human Mind. New York: Wiley, 1994. Print.

Savage-Rumbaugh, E. Sue, Stuart Shanker, and Talbot J. Taylor. Apes, Language, and the Human Mind. New York: Oxford UP, 1998. Print.

"The My Hero Project - Dr. Sue Savage-Rumbaugh." The MY HERO Project. Web. 23 Jan. 2011. http://myhero.com/go/hero.asp?hero=sue_savage_rumbaugh.

Feats of Genius

Kanzi is Knapping Flint

Kanzi has demonstrated abilities beyond the skill of most bonobos, but not just in language.

Kanzi has learned to knap flint, the process of making tools out of stone.  This skill has existed for over 4 million years and has evolved as man has evolved.

By striking a stone, large chunks are removed.  Then a pointed tool removes small, thin flakes to make a point.

Kanzi Blowing Up A Balloon, A "Human" Skill

Kanzi is very proud of his ability to flake Oldowan-style cutting knives, which he uses to cut rope to get his food from a box.

Kanzi is also able to control his breath, which scientists thought was a skill only humans have.  Unlike most other bonobos, Kanzi is able to blow up a balloon.

Kanzi's Art Work for the Business Record

One of Kanzi's most unusual accomplishments is that he created the cover art for the Business Record’s 2011 Book of Lists.

The Business Record commissioned two paintings from Kanzi.  One of Kanzi's paintings was of his son Teco.  The painting selected for the cover was Kanzi's interpretation of a statue at the Great Ape Trust in Des Moines, where Kanzi lives.

Kanzi missed the January 5th, 2011 unveiling party for that publication.  However Dr. Sue Savage-Rumbaugh, Kanzi's long-term trainer, said Kanzi was proud of his work and satisfied with the attention his painting received at the Des Moines Marriott Downtown.

“Why would he show such interest in doing (the paintings) and in the write-up that was in the Book of Lists, if he could not understand something of what was indeed occurring?” asked Sue Savage-Rumbaugh, the primary scientist to conduct language research with Kanzi and the bonobos at the Great Ape Trust.



"[Book of LIsts 2011] - Powered by PageTurnPro.com." Digital Publication, PDF To Flash Page Turning Software Free Trial. Web. 24 Jan. 2011. http://www.pageturnpro.com/Business-Publications/22182-Book-of-LIsts-2011/index.html#1.

"Eye on Psi Chi: Winter 2002." Psi Chi® - The International Honor Society in Psychology. Web. 24 Jan. 2011. http://www.psichi.org/pubs/articles/article_37.aspx.

"Flint Knapping." Michigan State University. Est. 1855. East Lansing, Michigan USA. Web. 24 Jan. 2011. https://www.msu.edu/~doneycar/flint.html.

"Kanzi Takes Pride in His Book of List Painting." Business Record. Web. 24 Jan. 2011. http://www.businessrecord.com/main.asp?SectionID=34&SubSectionID=97&ArticleID=11901.

"Kanzi the Talking Ape - Oprah.com." Oprah Winfrey's Official Website - Live Your Best Life - Oprah.com. Web. 23 Jan. 2011. http://www.oprah.com/oprahshow/Lisa-Ling-Meets-Kanzi-the-Talking-Ape/1.

The Visitor Bunny

Anderson Cooper and Kanzi

Kanzi and The Great Ape Trust have been in the news since they opened in 2004, including being featured on several national networks, including CNN and CBS, and in national magazines, including Time.


Anderson Cooper and Dr. Sue

 In November of 2010, CNN's Anderson Cooper, host of AC360, visited Des Moines and the Trust, interviewing Dr. Sue Savage-Rumbaugh, Kanzi, Teco, and the other bonobos.

 

Cooper began his interview with Dr. Sue Savage-Rumbaugh, discussing the program Dr. Sue has conducted for nearly forty years in an attempt to introduce language to bonobo apes.

Here Comes the Bunny!

Cooper also had the opportunity to interact with the bonobos Kanzi, Panbanisha, Nyota and baby Teco.

The interview was especially newsworthy because Anderson wore a white "bunny suit" for part of the interview.  Why?  Because the bonobos wanted him to.


I've Got Surprises!

The bunny suit is used by researchers to interact with the apes.  "Apparently, the bonobos like the bunny outfit," Cooper said on his show.  "The whole thing was surreal  I still don't know what happened.



The Great Ape scientists told Anderson that the bonobos also wanted him to give them "eggs, ice cubes, and pine needles.  I also gave them a ball and boy, oh, boy, did they love that ball."

The Great Ape Trust appeared in the cover story of Time Magazine on August 5, 2010, and was on The Oprah Winfrey Show on October 4, 2010.  Kanzi and his fellow bonobos also were featured in USA Today, CNN's American Morning, and Charlie Rose's program on PBS.

 

Click this link to see a video report on Anderson Cooper's visit at the Great Ape Trust:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qsUHuurFLXM&feature=related.

"Anderson Cooper Explains His Bunny Suit | The Atlantic Wire." Tracking the Most Influential Opinion Makers and Debates in Business and Politics | The Atlantic Wire. Web. 25 Jan. 2011. http://www.theatlanticwire.com/features/view/feature/Anderson-Cooper-Explains-His-Bunny-Suit-2317.

"Great Ape Trust | Great Ape Trust Bonobos on Anderson Cooper 360." Great Ape Trust | Bonobos, Orangutans and the Study of Ape Language, Tools and Intelligence. Web. 25 Jan. 2011. http://www.greatapetrust.org/media-center/news-releases/great-ape-trust-bonobos-on-cnn-s-anderson-cooper-360.

"Kanzi on Time Magazine and CNN." Project GAP. Web. 25 Jan. 2011. http://www.greatapeproject.org/en-US/noticias/Show/3188,kanzi-on-time-magazine-and-cnn.

Why?

Kanzi:  One Chatty Ape!

So, when it's all said and done, "what's the word" on Kanzi?

When Lisa Ling traveled to the Great Ape Trust for The Oprah Show, she concluded that Kanzi is "one chatty bonobo--and not just with other apes."

Ling continued, "What's extraordinary about Kanzi is that he is able to understand and communicate with humans.  His knowledge of language is so advanced, it has people asking:

Will a bonobo bridge the gap between primates and humans?"



Panbanisha "Takes Turns"

Some scientists think this has already happened.  Panbanisha, Kanzi's adopted sister, has learned turn-taking by living with humans.

According to the web site of the Great Ape Trust, Panbanisha's "language comprehension and production skills are the most advanced of all the bonobos at Great Ape Trust.  She began using the keyboard earlier than Kanzi, and has progressed further.

Panbanisha's handlers also refer to her as a "lady" because of the way she greets visitors, and eats--properly with utensils. 


Jane Goodall Believes Apes Share Feelings

Apes and Humans Learning Together

Statue by Hugo Rheinhold

Jane Goodall, a British primatologist, worked with wild chimpanzees for nearly fifty years, pioneering new methods of studying primates.  She believed also that humans greatly underestimate the "minds" of other primates.

Why study great apes?

Ted Townsend, founder of the Great Ape Trust, hopes to answer the following questions:

• What is the definition of a human being?
• How does a brain create a mind?
• What is language, how did it evolve, and is it uniquely human?
• How do children acquire language? How can enlightened rearing environments enhance learning?

In addition, the Great Ape Trust's Mission is "to understand the origins and future of culture, language, tools, and intelligence. Along with many respected scientists from multiple disciplines, with a range of beliefs, opinions, and methodologies, The Trust blends sanctuary, research, and education into an institution of courage, vision, and longitudinal, cross-generational inquiry."

Dr. Duane Rumbaugh, Scientist Emeritus at the Great Ape Trust answers this way: 

“When I look into the eyes of an ape, I see the universe. I see a magnificence in nature and in beings that I can’t see any other way. One can begin to sense there is a greatness beyond the ape that we need to work hard to understand.”

The final word belongs to Dr. Sue Savage-Rumbaugh, from her book Kanzi: The Ape at the Brink of the Human Mind:

"We have set ourselves too much apart, grasping for definitions that will distinguish man from all other life on the planet. We must rejoin the great stream of life from whence we arose and strive to see within it the seeds of all we are and all we may become." 
 
Apeaware. Web. 21 Jan. 2011. http://apeaware.blogspot.com/.

The Darwin Monkey Bronze Statue after Hugo Rheinhold. Web. 24 Jan. 2011. http://darwinmonkey.com/.

"Bonobos May Have Greater Linguistic Skills Than Previously Thought." Science Daily: News & Articles in Science, Health, Environment & Technology. Web. 21 Jan. 2011.

"Great Ape Trust | Meet Our Apes, Bonobos, Oragutans, Kanzi, Panbanisha, Elikya, Teco, Nyota, Maisha, Matata, Rocky, Allie." Great Ape Trust | Bonobos, Orangutans and the Study of Ape Language, Tools and Intelligence. Web. 25 Jan. 2011. http://www.greatapetrust.org/about-the-trust/meet-our-apes/panbanisha.

"Jane Goodall Biography - Life, Family, Childhood, Children, Parents, Wife, School, Mother, Son, Book, Old, Information, Born, House, Marriage, Time, Year." Encyclopedia of World Biography. Web. 25 Jan. 2011. http://www.notablebiographies.com/Gi-He/Goodall-Jane.html.

"Kanzi the Talking Ape - Oprah.com." Oprah Winfrey's Official Website - Live Your Best Life - Oprah.com. Web. 23 Jan. 2011. http://www.oprah.com/oprahshow/Lisa-Ling-Meets-Kanzi-the-Talking-Ape/1.