Intergroup Cooperation in Shotgun Hunting AmongBaYaka Foragers and Yambe Farmers from the Republic of the Congo

Aug 21, 2026

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Focusing on the crucial role of interethnic cooperation in large-scale human adaptation, this study examines cooperative mechanisms within the context of "gun hunting" in the northern Republic of the Congo. It highlights that Congo Basin forest foragers and neighboring farmers maintain stable relationships through exchange systems regulated by norms and institutions, such as fictive kinship.
Based on structured interviews with 77 BaYaka hunters and 15 Yambe gun owners, as well as observations from 9 focal hunting trips, the findings reveal that while cooperation remains traditionally organized under fictive kinship structures, high demand for bushmeat yields substantial cash profits for gun owners. In contrast, hunters are primarily compensated with cigarettes, alcohol, and the traditional "hunter's share" of meat. To equalize these earnings, hunters strategically conceal catches or ammunition. Finally, the study discusses how this long-standing cooperative system is entangled with contemporary logging, the bushmeat trade, and expanding market dynamics.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages24

Reading Time1 h 0 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Background: intergroup cooperation and exchange

Study setting and exchange structure in shotgun hunting

Methods: interviews and hunting trip observations

Findings: fictive kinship, unequal benefits, and strategic hiding

Discussion: currencies of value and links to logging and bushmeat trade

Intergroup Cooperation in Shotgun Hunting Among BaYaka Foragers andYambe Farmers from the Republic of the Congo

Vidrige H. Kandza1 · Haneul Jang1 · Francy Kiabiya Ntamboudila2 · Sheina Lew-Levy3 · Adam H. Boyette1

Accepted: 3 April 2023 © The Author(s) 2023

Abstract

Whereas many evolutionary models emphasize within-group cooperation or between-group competition in explaining human large-scale cooperation, recent work highlights a critical role for intergroup cooperation in human adaptation. Here we investigate intergroup cooperation in the domain of shotgun hunting in northern Republic of the Congo. In the Congo Basin broadly, forest foragers maintain relationships with neighboring farmers based on systems of exchange regulated by normsand institutions such as fictive kinship. In this study, we examine how relationships between Yambe farmers and BaYaka foragers support stable intergroup cooperation in the domain of shotgun hunting. In the study village, shotgun hunting is based on a specialization-based exchange wherein Yambe farmers contribute shotguns and access to markets to buy cartridges and sell meat while BaYaka foragers contribute their specialized forest knowledge and skill. To understand how costs and benefits are distributed, we conducted structured interviews with 77 BaYaka hunters and 15 Yambe gun owners and accompanied hunters on nine hunting trips. We found that hunts are organized in a conventional manner within a fictive kinship structure, consistent with the presence of intercultural mechanisms to stabilize cooperation. However, because bushmeat demand is high, gun owners can gain significant cash profit, while compensating hunters only with cigarettes, alcohol, and a traditional hunter’s portion of meat. To level payoffs, hunters strategically hide kills or cartridges from gun owners to feed their own families. Our results illustrate how each group prioritizes different currencies (e.g., cash, meat, family, intergroup relations) and provide insights into how intergroup cooperation is stabilized in this setting. The example of this long-standing intergroup cooperative system is discussed in terms of its contemporary entwinement with logging, the bushmeat trade, and growing market intersection.

Extended author information available on the last page of the article

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Keywords Interethnic cooperation · Shotgun hunting · Social norms · Inequality · Foragers · Congo Basin

In the evolutionary social sciences, competition between groups has been proposed as key to the emergence of human cooperation (Bowles, 2009; Manson & Wrangham, 1991; Puurtinen & Mappes, 2009; Richerson et al., 2016) . Theoretical and empirical work, for instance, suggests symbolic markers of group membership evolved to facilitate coordination within groups, and that such coordination would be selected for in contexts of conflict with other groups (Handley & Mathew, 2020; McElreath et al., 2003) . Yet, markers of group membership, such as the often-arbitrary traits associated with ethnicity, can also facilitate intergroup cooperation if they are associated with specific roles or products, such as in contexts of trade (Lupo, 2006; Tucker et al., 2021) . Moreover, most intergroup interactions, including those between selfidentified ethnic groups, are peaceful and exhibit stable cooperation across political, economic, and social domains (Bunce & McElreath, 2018; Fearon & Laitin, 1996; Fry & Söderberg, 2014; Pisor & Surbeck, 2019; Rupp, 2011; Tucker et al., 2021) .

According to Robinson and Barker (2017), intergroup cooperation is likely to be sustainable when groups exchange resources that each is more efficient at acquiring, leading to a division of labor. This is consistent with the idea that intergroup cooperation between human groups can effectively buffer against local resource shortfalls by spreading risk across the socio-ecological landscape (Cashdan, 1987, 2001a; Colson, 1979; Migliano et al., 2017; Wiessner, 1982) . Along

FAQs

What is the core issue focused on in this study?

The study focuses on how interethnic cooperation plays a crucial role in human adaptation, specifically examining cooperative mechanisms within the context of 'gun hunting' in the northern Republic of the Congo.

How is the exchange between BaYaka hunters and Yambe farmers arranged?

Gun hunting relies on a division-of-labor exchange: Yambe farmers provide firearms and access markets to purchase ammunition and sell meat, while BaYaka foragers supply their specialized forest knowledge and hunting skills.

Why is there a noticeable inequality in earnings within the cooperation?

Due to high demand for bushmeat, gun owners yield substantial cash profits, whereas hunters are compensated primarily with cigarettes, alcohol, and the traditional 'hunter's share' of meat. To cope with this disparity, hunters strategically conceal catches or ammunition in certain situations.

Aug 21, 2026

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