Chimps and bonobos share a similar protolanguage

If a bonobo and a chimpanzee ever crossed paths, they'd probably be able to understand each other. Although it has been known for some time that bonobos and chimps perform a number of similar gestures, this is the first time that the meaning of those gestures has been found to significantly correlate. Between 88 and 96 per cent of the gestures performed by bonobos are also used by chimpanzees.