Five female bonobos maimed one male. The incident confirmed recent research that the species is not as peaceful as previously thought.

Scientists have recorded an extremely brutal case of bonobo collective aggression, calling into question their image as peace-loving primates. German zoologists have described an attack by five adult female bonobos on a male from their own group. The primates bit him for a long time, causing severe injuries, including bitten off phalanges and damage to the genitals. The male, named Hugo, managed to escape, but after the incident he was no longer observed - scientists admit that he could have died. The article was published in Current Biology.

The episode described by researchers from the Institute of Evolutionary Anthropology. Max Planck, occurred in February 2025 in the community of LouisKotale . A few minutes before the attack, the observers heard loud cries of primates, and when they approached, they saw the females simultaneously attacking Hugo lying on the ground, while the rest of the group watched indifferently.

Hugo lay on his stomach, covering his head with his hands and making alarming cries as the females continued their attack. One of them bit off part of his ear, the other tore the skin off his leg and bit his genitals. The other two, sitting on top, rubbed against each other. When the researchers were able to take a closer look at the male, it turned out that there were significantly more injuries: several phalanges on the toes were chewed off, wounds were found on the lips, eyebrows, fingers and genital area, there was no hair in certain areas of the body, and there was a large area of ​​flayed skin on the neck.

After almost half an hour of attack, the females stopped their aggression and began to lick the blood from his body, which was joined by other members of the group. Hugo later ran away, but was never found for months. Scientists suggest that the aggression could have been provoked by an incident two days before the attack: during mating, Hugo grabbed the cub of one of the females, which caused her anger. However, the exact cause cannot be determined—the researchers did not see the beginning of the conflict.

A new observation confirms the latest theory that bonobos are not as peaceful as previously thought. Recent research shows that male bonobos show aggression even more often than chimpanzees, and females often form groups and attack males, strengthening their dominant position. In parallel, other work indicates that the image of chimpanzees as exceptionally cruel creatures requires revision: it was recently found that they comfort their relatives as often as bonobos.