Chimp Off the Old Block?

A very substantial study suggests that our closest living relatives, the Common chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes), behave in a very human way, as they enter old age (https://www.theguardian.com/science/2020/oct/22/chimps-pare-down-their-social-circle-in-later-years-study). As their youthful aggressiveness declines, they seem to hang around with old cronies, at the expense of interacting with a wider circle of primates in the social group. Chimpanzees presumably don't have a perception of their eventual end. It is consequently suggested that this phenomenon occurs because, as males age, they compete less for mates and concentrate on close, reciprocal relationships with trusted partners. It is likely that the behaviour also arose in humans before we became capable of fixating on future events. But, then again, it could just be more pleasant and less demanding, as your energy declines, to hang around with old 'friends'.