Doubt Cast On Research Claiming Chimps Can Learn New “Accents”

Plants and Animals





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The original study claimed that Dutch chimps learned the "Scottish" call for apples. apple2499/Shutterstock

Earlier this year, it was widely reported that chimpanzees could modify their calls to fit in with new groups. This research was centered around the relocation of a group of chimps from a Dutch zoo to one in Scotland, and claimed that over three years the continental apes learned a Scottish brogue.