Animal Culture linked to its Conservation at CMS COP 13 for the first time

The Convention on the Conservation on Migratory birds Conference of Parties (CMS COP 13) is being held in Gandhinagar. Proposals were presented to conserve Sperm Whales and Chimpanzees based on their culture. This is the first time such proposal is being made in the world.

Highlights

It was presented at the conference that some of the animals such as elephants, dolphins and whales acquire some of their knowledge through social learning. They learn most of their behaviors from adults, especially the migrating routes.

Findings

The report presented at the conference says that when a species gets vanished from an area, its critical knowledge will also be lost. For instance, as a result of commercial whaling in the coast of New Zealand, the whales lost their knowledge of migration route and stopped calving in the region. This was during 1800. Recently, in 2000, after 200 years, they have started calving in the region again.

This proves that genetic mixing among the species might help in recolonizing their forgotten destinations. Therefore, it is essential to protect their cultural knowledge for their survival.

In case of Chimpanzees, their nut cracking methodologies are passed on to their next generations.

Month: Current Affairs - February, 2020