Moja ( Swahili: "one") was a

chimpanzee The chimpanzee (''Pan troglodytes''), also known as simply the chimp, is a species of great ape native to the forest and savannah of tropical Africa. It has four confirmed subspecies and a fifth proposed subspecies. When its close relative th ...

at the

Chimpanzee and Human Communication Institute The Chimpanzee and Human Communication Institute (CHCI) was located on the campus of Central Washington University in Ellensburg, Washington. CHCI included a sanctuary for chimpanzees who have learned to communicate with humans and each other using ...

. She was born at the

Laboratory for Experimental Medicine and Surgery in Primates The Laboratory for Experimental Medicine and Surgery in Primates (LEMSIP) was a New York University research facility founded in 1965 by Edward Goldsmith and Jan Moor-Jankowski. The Tuxedo, New York, Tuxedo, New York (state), New York-based outfit ...

(LEMSIP). In infanthood Moja was treated in a similar way to a child, and immersed in an environment of

American Sign Language American Sign Language (ASL) is a natural language that serves as the predominant sign language of Deaf communities in the United States of America and most of Anglophone Canadians, Anglophone Canada. ASL is a complete and organized visual lang ...

. While engaging in play activities, she was observed changing her appearance while in the presence of a mirror using clothing, masks and make-up. She was observed also to place sunglasses upon her head, look into a mirror and make the sign-language sign for "glasses" on one occasion, also using the mirror for the application of lip-gloss and a crayon for the same purpose. Moja is known as "the first ape to paint figurative works." For example, she drew a circle, colored it in orange, and signed ''cherry''.

References

{{authority control Individual chimpanzees

See also

References