Two bonobos adopted infants outside their group, marking a first for great apes

The adoptive mothers fed, carried and cuddled orphan infants

mother bonobo sitting with her adopted baby

Two infants, estimated to be under 3 years old, gained adoptive mothers outside their own band of bonobos. One mum named Marie (left) grooms Flora (right), whom she adopted when the orphaned infant turned up in her social group.

Nahoko Tokuyama

Attentive parenting appears across the animal world, but adoption is rarer, especially when youngsters taken in aren’t kin.