Are Chimpanzees Capable of Empathy?

Three years ago in the central African country of Gabon, a mother chimpanzee, Suzee, lounged on the forest floor with her two offspring, Sassandra and Sia. Sassandra scrambled up and down the trunk of a nearby tree, while Suzee casually swiped an insect from the underside of a leaf and placed it between her own lips. The action sparked curiosity in Sassandra, who reached for the object, but Suzee pushed her aside playfully. Then the mother chimp took hold of Sia’s nearby foot and placed the insect onto an open wound.