How do chimpanzees fish for termites and ants?

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A common chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) sits on a rock holding a long blade of grass in its mouth, with dense green foliage in the background. — chimpanzee The West African, or masked, chimpanzee (*Pan troglodytes verus*) is a critically endangered subspecies of chimpanzee.

Chimpanzees demonstrate remarkable intelligence through the use of tools to forage for food. To fish for termites and ants, they create probes from various materials, including grass stalks, vines, branches, peeled bark, and the midribs of leaves.1

This behavior can involve sophisticated techniques depending on the region. For instance, chimpanzees in the Congo basin utilize a "tool set" by first digging into a termite mound with a stout stick and subsequently using a long, slender wand to fish for the insects. These tool-using behaviors are not innate but are acquired by younger animals through social learning from their elders, representing a form of culture passed down through generations.1