The Figan Follow Publication in Folia Primatologica (1977)
After returning to Stanford in 1974, David and Curt completed an exhaustive analysis of the data collected during the fifty days and prepared a manuscript, which they submitted to the leading scientific journal in the field of primatology, Folia Primatologica. The article was accepted and published in January, 1977 (volume 28, pages 283- 297), and appeared alongside an important article by Dr. Jane.
As of October, 2025, the Figan Follow publication is Open Access (!) courtesy of De Gruyter Brill publishers, as per a Creative Commons license. An official PDF of the entire article can be freely viewed and downloaded from the De Gruyter Brill web site. A higher quality PDF can be viewed below.
The Figan Follow Oral Presentation at Cambridge, England (1976)
The Figan Follow was officially announced to the scientific world on August 24, 1976, at the Sixth Congress of the International Primatological Society in Cambridge, England. The 20 minute presentation to a captive audience of esteemed scholars and scientists was part of a symposium on “Inter-individual Relations and Group Structure,” chaired by Dr. Jane’s mentor, Dr. Robert Hinde. David and Curt’s colleagues at Gombe — Grant Heidrich, Jim Moore, and Lisa Nowell — also presented their findings at this symposium.
Abstract: Fifty days in the life of a free-ranging adult male chimpanzee.
Curt Busse and David Riss
An adult male chimpanzee living in the Gombe National Park in Tanzania was observed for fifty consecutive days during July and August, 1974, for a total of 565 hours. This individual (Figan) was the alpha male in a community of thirty-eight chimpanzees. The composition and size of temporary associations was influenced primarily by the presence of two oestrus females and by the distribution and abundance of food resources. Predatory behaviour occurred periodically and meat was eaten on five occasions. Agonistic and sexual behaviours are discussed relative to Figan’s high social status. Any benefits resulting from the maintenance of the alpha rank were obscure. A supportive relationship was maintained between Figan and his older brother (Faben), though some sibling conflicts also occurred. An assessment is given as to the effect of observer presence and the regular provisioning of bananas on Figan’s behaviour.
The Figan Follow Seminar at Gombe (1974)
David and Curt presented their preliminary results to their fellow students at the Gombe Mess on August 31, 1974, just thirteen days after the Figan Follow ended. At the time, Dr. Jane was attending the Wenner-Gren Symposium #62: The Behavior of Great Apes at the Burg Wartenstein castle in Austria.1
Below is the complete 20 page PDF of the notes from this seminar, followed by the konyagi-inspired Figan Follow map that was officially unveiled at the seminar.
Here is the infamous Figan Follow map, including some of the scientific formulas used to predict Figan’s travel patterns. The dotted line at the bottom depicts Figan’s attempt to follow David and Curt in a watertaxi.
- The Wenner-Gren symposium resulted in a book, The Great Apes, edited by David Hamburg and Elizabeth McCown and published in 1979. The book included chapters by a Who’s Who of ape researchers, including Gombe alumni Harold Bauer, David Bygott, Stewart Halperin, Pat McGinnis, Bill McGrew, Anne Pusey, and Richard Wrangham.
The book began with Dr. Jane’s chapter describing the attacks on Kahama males Godi, Dé, and Goliath by groups of marauders from Kasakela. Dr. Jane was incredibly generous to include Curt and David as coauthors, as well as Ann Pierce and four researchers who directly observed the three attacks — Adriano Bandora, Emilie Bergmann, Hilali Matama, and Esilom Mpongo.
Reference:
Jane Goodall, Adriano Bandora, Emilie Bergmann, Curt Busse, Hilali Matama, Esilom Mpongo, Ann Pierce, and David Riss. 1979. Intercommunity Interactions in the Chimpanzee Population of the Gombe National Park. In, The Great Apes, David Hamburg and Elizabeth McGown, eds. Pages 12-53 (Benjamin/Cummings). ↩︎