Application of insects to wounds of self and others by chimpanzees in the wild.

Self-medication refers to the process by which a host suppresses or prevents the deleterious effects of parasitism and other causes of illness via behavioural means. It has been observed across multiple animal taxa (e.g. bears, elephants, moths, starlings), with many case studies in great apes. Although the majority of studies on self-medication in non-human primates concern the ingestion of plant parts or non-nutritional substances to combat or control intestinal parasites, more recent examples also report topical applications of leaves or other materials (including arthropods) to skin integuments. Thus far, however, the application of insects or insect parts to an individual's own wound or the wound of a conspecific has never been reported. Here, we report the first observations of chimpanzees applying insects to their own wounds (n = 19) and to the wounds of conspecifics (n = 3).