Bonobo Quotes

“Though bonobos tend to be a lot hairier than us—and they don’t build houses or churches or Pentagons like we do—these primates look and act remarkably human. They often even go beyond the merely “human,” and enter the realm of the truly “humane.”

“Deep in the heart of the hot, wet African rainforest, there lives a tribe of peacemakers who share a multiplicity of pleasures and make a very special kind of love. South of the sprawling Congo River, in the midst of war-ravaged territory, some 2,000 miles from the arid Ethiopian desert where the oldest human fossils have been found, lies this lush and steamy jungle paradise, the only natural habitat of the bonobo.”

“Bonobo discipline involves being schooled in a gentler, more playful fashion.”

“What might happen if we could somehow reorient ourselves toward our more loving, bonobo side rather than our inner mad chimpanzee?”

“In Bonoboville, the females gently but firmly rule the roost, keeping the males gentle and firm”

“Interestingly, bonobo percussionists prefer a tempo of 280 beats per minute, the syllabic rate at which most humans speak.”

“bonobos, related to chimpanzees and native to the Congo, have been found to engage in French kissing.”

“Using information about animal behavior to justify social or political ideology is wrong . . . People need to be able to make decisions about their lives without having to worry about keeping up with the bonobos.”

“Every new discovery about the genome is consistent with evolution having happened. Whether we find it appealing or not is another question, but personally I like being fourth cousin to a mushroom and having a bonobo as my closest living relative. It makes me feel a real part of the world.”