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CrowdScience

Can Animals Commit Murder?

CrowdScience

BBC

Science

4.81K Ratings

🗓️ 4 August 2017

⏱️ 29 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

** Contains some upsetting scenes **

As a species, we humans can be uniquely horrible to our own kind. But are we the only animal to commit murder? Listener Michelle’s question sends CrowdScience trekking – and getting lost - in the Budongo rainforest in Uganda in search of one of Man’s closest relatives, the chimpanzee.

We hear from the scientists, who only days before the team’s arrival at the camp, witnessed a gang of chimps brutally killing another adult. But does chimpanzee lethal aggression pass muster as murder? We head to the capital Kampala for some legal advice and take a look at the grim history of putting animals on trial.

Do you have a question we can turn into a programme? Email us at crowdscience@bbc.co.uk

Presenter: Geoff Marsh Producer: Louisa Field

(Image: Closeup of angry chimpanzee Credit: Getty Images)

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

You're about to listen to a BBC podcast and maybe it's when I had a hand in.

0:04.0

I'm Tammy Walker and I produce podcasts for the BBC.

0:08.0

My role is to give new and diverse creators a voice with the opportunity to build a career.

0:12.0

That's the thing I love about podcasts.

0:14.4

You start with just a good idea, but then you have the space to see where it goes.

0:18.4

And doing that at the BBC means we can really run with the best stories

0:21.9

while developing the most unique audio talent.

0:24.8

So if you like what you hear, why not check out the huge range of podcast we've got on BBC Sounds? So that is promontologist Kat hooting trying to locate Presenter Jeff and the field ranger who's with him.

0:45.0

We're walking through the jungle in Uganda and

0:50.0

since Jeff's not here I should probably say this is Krause on the BBC World Service.

0:56.0

I'm producer Louisa.

0:58.0

Today we're looking for chimpanzees, but first I need to locate a all different ape my presenter because I want him to

1:09.8

help me answer this question.

1:17.6

Hi crowd science, I'm Michelle from New York. My question is, are human beings the only animals that commit murder?

1:22.1

As in plotting ahead of time to deliberately take the life

1:25.0

of another human being for a specific purpose.

1:30.0

Okay I'm just in the forest with field assistant Stephen and there's some sort of alarm clock

1:37.8

bug going on above our heads.

1:40.0

Louisa and Cat have fallen behind and Stephen.

1:43.0

How are we going to find them?

1:44.0

I'm going to foot once and then it is just very close, coming towards us,

1:49.0

and then she also replies once.

...

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