| Baboons descend from their sleeping places high up in the trees around 6:30 - 7:00 in the morning. As part of their morning greeting ritual they take turns grooming each other, which serves two purposes. First, external parasites and insects are removed to maintain cleanliness and second, bonds are formed and reinforced, a necessary phenomenon with animals living in social structures where several acitivities like hunting, food gathering and raising the young are shared. Grooming takes place first thing in the morning before they head out in a line to look for food. An extended session also takes place at the end of the day before the baboons climb up to the trees for the night. Here, Chacma baboons take turns greeting and grooming each other, the one standing in the front had already paid his dues and now enjoys himself. |
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