Primates

The heroes of the movie Kong: Skull Island prepare to encounter the 104-foot-tall ape King Kong.

How Big Can a Land Animal Get?

King Kong's biggest enemy isn’t humans—it’s the laws of physics

The male mountain gorilla Limbo (left) and Green Lady, a female from the same species, are on view in the exhibition, "Objects of Wonder," at the Natural History Museum.

Dian Fossey’s Gorilla Skulls Are Scientific Treasures and a Symbol of Her Fight

At a new Smithsonian exhibition, the skulls of “Limbo” and “Green Lady” have a story to tell

Tracking individual lemurs—such as the endangered red-bellied lemur pictured here—is no easy task. But researchers hope that facial recognition software can help in the fight for the survival of the bushy-tailed primates.

How Do You Pick a Lemur Out of a Lineup? This Software Makes the Leap

Facial recognition software can identify individuals, helping researchers conserve the endangered primate

Colo died at age 60 in the zoo where she was so famously born.

Colo, the World's First Gorilla Born in Captivity, Is Dead

The miracle baby turned matriarch was 60 years old

To speak, perchance to think? A long-tailed macaque opens wide in Bali, Indonesia.

What's Really Keeping Monkeys From Speaking Their Minds? Their Minds

When it comes to language, primates have all the right vocal equipment. They just lack the brains

Grégoire Courtine, an author on the new study, holds a silicon model of a primate’s brain, a microelectrode array and a pulse generator. The brain-spine interface consists of elements like these.

A New Wireless Brain Implant Helps Paralyzed Monkeys Walk. Humans Could Be Next.

One small step for monkeys, one potential leap for humans

Hanging Out With Friends Makes Chimps Less Stressed

We all need somebody to lean on

Wild capuchins make stone tools, but don't know how to use them.

Wild Monkeys Unintentionally Make Stone Age Tools, But Don't See the Point

Scientists observe a “unique” human behavior in wild animals

A study of baboons found that have an easy life when young can pay off years into the future.

For Baboons, a Tough Childhood Can Lead to a Short Life

Primates that grow up under tough conditions don’t live as long as those that have it easy

Can Great Apes Be Vaccinated Against Ebola and Other Diseases?

Vaccinations could be the best defense against devastating population drops

Pliobates cataloniae, a newly discovered ancient ape

Tiny Ancient Skeleton Redefines the Split Between Monkeys and Apes

The last common ancestor of all apes may have been smaller than previously thought

Sri Lakan Slender Loris

Why Primatologists Love Collecting Poop

There's intel inside monkey feces — in the form of DNA

Female Chimps More Likely Than Males to Hunt With Tools

A new study investigates the social and hunting behaviors of Fongoli chimpanzees

Scientists looked for the black-and-white colubus monkey in protected areas across the Ivory Coast but only found one population of the animals still living in a sacred grove.

Illegal Cocoa Farms Are Driving Out Primates In Ivory Coast

Thirteen national parks and reserves have lost all their primates as people move in to protected regions to farm cacao

Chimpanzees May Have Their Own Form of Bilingualism

Humans aren’t the only primates capable of learning new “words” for the same object

A chimp steals a glance at a photographer in Uganda's Kibale National Park.

Chimps Caught in First Known Nighttime Crop Raids

“The nightlife of chimpanzees has been neglected,” say researchers who filmed wild animals using a fallen tree as a bridge into protected cornfields

A wolf yawning in the snow near Hesse, Germany.

Yawning Spreads Like a Plague in Wolves

Evidence of contagious yawning in chimps, dogs and now wolves suggests that the behavior is linked to a mammalian sense of empathy

Borneo Has Lost 30 Percent of Its Forest in the Past 40 Years

Borneo's tropical forests have fallen at twice the rate as the rest of the world's felled rainforests

A chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) mother resting with her children in western Uganda.

Ebola Vaccine For Chimps Could Help Save Wild Populations

A trial of a chimp vaccine highlights debates over vaccinating wild populations and using chimps in medical research

Mom's ample body serves as this baby's bed for now, but soon she'll grow up to build sleeping nests of her own.

Chimpanzees Are Extremely Picky About Where They Sleep

The primates painstakingly rebuild their nest from scratch every night—a pre-bed ritual reminiscent of the "Princess and the Pea"

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