Chimpanzees captured treating each other’s wounds with plants – watch video here

Chimpanzees Seen Treating Wounds with Medicinal Plants in Uganda Forest (Image: Canva)

In Uganda's Budongo Forest, the soft rustling of leaves speaks volumes. In this forest, chimpanzees have been observed treating wounds using plants—such as forest physicians treating one another.

Scientists at Oxford spent months with local guides in the dense forest. They saw chimpanzees employing medicinal plants as a form of first aid on injuries. The research is published in Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution and provides new insight into earlier observations of animal self-medication.

Chimpanzees were observed dabbing leaves on wounds or chewing them. The chewed mixture was then applied directly to open cuts and scrapes. Lead researcher Elodie Freymann says this treatment could protect wounds from infection.

How Chimps Manage Injuries in the Wild

Two chimpanzee communities in Budongo Forest exhibited this behaviour. These groups are afflicted by wounds from battles, falls, or traps set by humans. Wound care methods included chewing plants, leaf dabbing, and licking. Saliva could provide healing effects, but plants are said to have medicinal properties.

The researchers observed each group for four months. They even studied old notes from the 1990s. Battered old logbooks recorded chimps applying leaves to wounds, years before this project started.

Freymann said they also use leaves to clean genitals after sex. And the same way, they use leaves to clean themselves after they poop. Such habits could prevent the spread of dangerous infections.

Tool-Making Chimps Show Thoughtful Choices

A recent study explored another clever trait of chimpanzees. It found they pick flexible plants to make better tools. Materials not used by them were stiffer—about 175 percent more rigid.

This indicates chimps might know how things work. Some learning occurs by trial and error, but a lot gets transmitted socially. Chimps tend to mimic others or trade tools with each other in their community. This information suggests what scientists refer to as "folk physics"—an innate sense of the rules governing nature.

In a woods filled with threats and mystery, chimpanzees still have surprises in store. Whether they are treating wounds or making tools, they demonstrate how considerate and sophisticated wild nature can be.