APES AND THEIR BEDS 



canopies too, in some cases ; but there appears to be a great 

 deal of confusion in the various accounts of these structures 

 that have been given from time to time. This is perhaps 

 not altogether surprising, because not only are the regions 

 where the great apes dwell difficult of access, so that but 

 few people ever visit them, but as the animals are shy and 

 easily disturbed, they are seldom seen occupying their nests ; 

 and when the structure is deserted it is perhaps not always 

 easy to tell exactly the manner in which it is used, or to what 

 species it belongs. 



But although we cannot speak with certainty about these 

 " nests " or beds or shelters in every particular, we are able 

 to form a general idea of their character from the accounts 

 given by various travellers. 



The Chimpanzee (Anthropoplthecus niger) makes his bed 

 on trees, far from the abodes of men. Some travellers have 

 stated that the animal constructs a regular hut for itself or 

 for its family, but this seems to be an error. According to 

 Dr. Savage's observations published in the Boston Journal of 

 Natural History as long ago as 1843, the chimpanzee builds 

 his nest or bed by bending or partly breaking branches and 

 twigs in such a way that they rest on a large limb of the tree, 

 or in a crotch. The materials are crossed and perhaps inter- 

 woven a little so that they form a fairly firm platform which 

 may be as high as fifty feet from the ground, though it is 

 usually not more than twenty or thirty. The male animal is 

 said to spend the night on a branch underneath the nest, and 

 perhaps that accounts for the belief to which we have 

 already referred, that he constructs a sort of shed. 



These retreats are not permanent, but are changed in 

 pursuit of food or solitude, according to circumstances. As 

 a rule they are found in elevated situations, because the low 

 grounds are often cleared by the natives for their villages 



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