A publication of the Association of College and Research Libraries
A division of the American Library Association
Editorial Offices: 575 Main Street, Suite 300, Middletown, CT 06457-3445
Phone: (860) 347-6933
Fax: (860) 704-0465

FOR INTERNAL USE ONLY

Please do not link to this page.

July 2018 Vol. 55 No. 11

Hare (Duke Univ.) and Yamamoto (Kobe Univ., Japan) present a timely update to understandings of this unique ape by curating field and captive research. As chimpanzees’ closest living relative, bonobos are phylogenetically positioned to illuminate the evolutionary path of human ancestors. Interestingly, the singular aspects of bonobo ecology as well as their evolution in isolation from other apes led to sociable foraging adaptations. Historically, bonobos were the least known ape, but research in the 1970s and work described in this volume are creating a “bonobo renaissance.” Hare and Woods apply the self-domestication hypothesis to account for the species’ xenophilia and cooperation—features which set them apart from chimpanzees—and contributors provide new evidence regarding ecological events that isolated the bonobo populations. Authors use new genetic, demographic, and geospatial technology and modeling to test alternative hypotheses, pointing readers to areas of future research. The volume concludes with a discussion of conservation concerns for bonobos. Geospatial imaging is used to prioritize critical habitat, and monitoring of demographic trends in bonobo sanctuaries can aid plans for rehabilitation and release of bonobos, many of whom enter sanctuaries as infants due to the widespread poaching of adults.

--L. K. Sheeran, Central Washington University

Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates through faculty and professionals.