Advancing Veterinary Medicine

In collaboration with the College of Veterinary Medicine at Iowa State University, our team is working on an innovative research project to advance individual well-being, reproductive techniques, and genetic diversity in bonobos. Transferring bonobos and other great apes for breeding purposes is costly and can have negative impacts on individual health and welfare. Artificial insemination can help improve animal well-being by limiting the number of moves an animal has to make in its lifetime and by maximizing breeding opportunities in the population. The bonobo population in the United States is declining; there have been 3 births and 12 deaths in the last 5 years. Our scientists are testing the hypothesis that awake, voluntary semen collection and artificial insemination are viable approaches to advancing the sustainability of the bonobo population. We hope our study will inform best care practices for bonobos and, if successful, can be adapted for use in other great ape species living in human care.

Sperm Preservation

Collecting semen samples from endangered species is a priority for many captive breeding programs. However, little is known about sperm preservation in bonobos; the motility of bonobo sperm after freezing and thawing the samples is relatively low (from Gerits and colleagues, 2022). Research in this area has been limited by invasive collection methods (e.g., electroejaculation under anesthesia), resulting in low sample quality and availability. At Ape Initiative, Kanzi and the other male bonobos are being trained to provide voluntary semen samples using an artificial swelling device that closely mimics a female bonobo’s external genitalia. This technique prioritizes the male bonobos’ well-being and allows our collaborators at the Iowa State University College of Veterinary Medicine to test preservation techniques on multiple semen samples from the same individual. With improved sperm preservation methods, samples can be shared with other institutions to promote the genetic diversity and welfare of the bonobo population living in human care.

Awake Artificial Insemination

Bonobos are our closest living relatives and one of the most intelligent species on the planet. All of the female bonobos living at Ape Initiative have been trained to present their external genitalia, referred to as a swelling, to their caregivers. This husbandry behavior allows the bonobos to be active participants in their own care and helps the bonobos feel comfortable and confident during routine veterinary exams. Our team is building off of this behavior to train the female bonobos to present their swellings for artificial insemination. Traditional insemination techniques in nonhuman great apes rely on anesthesia and are limited to a single attempt or minimal attempts conducted during routine physical exams. Training bonobos to voluntary present for awake artificial insemination offers a safer alternative to promoting genetic diversity in endangered species. This technique also promotes individual welfare by allowing for more species-typical social groups, and eliminates the need to transfer animals solely for breeding.

Physical and Behavioral Monitoring

Our team is committed to improving the health and well-being of bonobos living in human care. Unfortunately, there are very few published studies on bonobo health and welfare. This is particularly true for pregnant bonobos and newborn infants. The bonobos living at Ape Initiative can choose to participate in daily husbandry training sessions, which has resulted in bonobos being trained for veterinary behaviors such as cardiac ultrasounds, ECGs via the KardiaMobile device, as well as urine and saliva sample collection. At Ape Initiative, we believe science and animal welfare go hand-in-hand. For our voluntary semen collection and artificial insemination project, our team will monitor the bonobos’ diets, stool qualities, weights, blood pressures, ear temperatures, ECG readings, urinary hormones, and overall behaviors and dispositions. We will also monitor fetal development, as well as the physical and behavioral health of any newborn bonobos. Our goal is to learn as much as we can about the health of pregnant and newborn bonobos, and to use our findings to inform best care practices for endangered great apes.