Primates at play show why monkeying around is good for the brain
New research adds to the evidence that playing is linked to learning brain power in primates.
Academic rigor, journalistic flair
Articles on Primates
Displaying 1 - 20 of 42 articles
There’s not enough evidence to back the claim that humans originated in Europe
The theory that humankind originated in Europe is an old one. It was abandoned in 1924 when the first Australopithecus was discovered in South Africa.
The bushbaby family just got a new member. Here’s how we identified it
Newly recognised genetic populations carry their evolutionary history with them, and the history of their habits. This is why detecting new species is so important.
Technology has confirmed a theory about Earth’s oldest venomous species
CT scanning allows scientists to observe and "dissect" fossils digitally using computer software - and to uncover secrets that are hundreds of millions of years old.
A gorilla shot and killed before my eyes: a primatologist’s plea to save great apes
Primate populations are declining around the world. The great apes are in danger of disappearing, and that bears a great risk for humanity itself.
How selfies and family photos put 300 million years of evolution on display
Much like the hair you carefully rearrange before a selfie, your cheek muscles and the accompanying smile date back about 250 million years.
Why did humans evolve big penises but small testicles?
We have the penis of a monogamous primate yet our body sizes suggest our ancestors slept around a lot.
60% of primate species now threatened with extinction, says major new study
Our closest relatives are being wiped out and it's all our fault.
Only 25 Hainan gibbons remain – what next for the world’s rarest primate?
It risks becoming the first ape to go extinct.
How penis bones help primates win the mating game – and why humans might have lost theirs
New research uncovers the role of the primate baculum and may explain why humans don’t have one.
Dawn of ‘Trumpocene’ era spells disaster for world’s primates
As Donald Trump prepares to enter the White House, there may be dark days ahead for some of the world's rarest and most beautiful primates.
Using monkeys for research is justified – it’s giving us treatments that would be otherwise impossible
Without research on primates, we wouldn't be able to understand the human brain – or repair it.
How monkeys make friends and influence each other
Because primates have relationships too you know.
What to do about Liberia’s island colony of abandoned lab chimps?
A small but dedicated team is offering these abandoned apes a brighter future.
Monkeys in South America are almost all colour blind and no one knows why
There must be some evolutionary force acting to maintain this visual 'defect'.
How our modular brain pieces the world together
Different parts of our brains process different things, like the facial features, voices and the gait of people we know. But it takes memory to weave them all together into a single picture.
Have humans always gone to war?
Archaeological remains, traditional tribes and conflict among chimpanzees can tell us much about the history of human warfare.
Orang-utans play video games too, and it can enrich their lives in the zoo
An experiment providing interactive games for orang-utans is showing the potential for digital technology to enrich the lives of zoo animals.
Deep calls or big balls? Howler monkeys are either all mouth, or all trousers
Social organisation plays a key role in the wide variation seen in the size of male howler monkey calls and the size of their testes.
How understanding evolution might help solve problems that bedevil society
Evolution also does not claim humans evolved from primates. Neither does it say non-human primates, including monkeys, baboons, chimpanzees and gorillas, will evolve into humans with time.
Top contributors
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Senior Lecturer, School of Psychology, Social Work and Social Policy, University of South Australia
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Postdoc in Vertebrate Palaeontology, University of the Witwatersrand
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Senior Lecturer in Zoology, Anglia Ruskin University
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Honorary Associate, Australian Institute for Primary Care and Ageing, La Trobe University
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Associate Professor, University of New South Wales Sydney, and Chief Investigator, ARC Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage, UNSW
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Lecturer, Georg-August-Universität Göttingen
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Professor in Music Education, University of Western Australia
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Lecturer in Biological Sciences, Monash University
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Associate Professor of Computational Biology, University of Melbourne
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Senior Lecturer in Biology, University of Bristol
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PhD in Biological Sciences, University of Bristol
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Professor of Palaeoclimatology, UCL
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Lecturer, University of Exeter
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Professor of Wildlife Conservation, University of Salford
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PhD student Wildlife Conservation, University of Salford
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