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Tag: monkey

  • Do Monkeys Also Get Cranky with Age? 

    Do Monkeys Also Get Cranky with Age? 

  • The Gene Switches That Set Humans Apart From Monkeys

    The Gene Switches That Set Humans Apart From Monkeys

    Researchers have pinpointed areas of the human genome that may be accountable for our unique human abilities. The DNA regions, known as HAQERs (Human Ancestor Quickly Evolved Regions), regulate the expression of protein-coding genes and play a role in the formation of our brain, digestive system, and immune system. They arose soon after the split between human and chimpanzee ancestry. Despite their usefulness, HAQERS can spread illness.

    While chimpanzees and gorillas are primates like us, there are important ways in which we humans stand apart from them. Even though there are few variations between human and great ape protein-coding genes, progress has been slow in elucidating the genetic basis of our “essentially human” traits. However, there is mounting evidence that the most significant alterations occurred in regions of our genome that do not code for proteins and were previously thought to be meaningless “junk DNA.”

    Quick Shifts

    An American research group led by Riley Mangan of Duke University has started looking for evidence of human evolution in these non-coding regions of the genome. Up until recently, it was thought that the most promising DNA sequences were those that were relatively stable for a long period of time yet underwent significant alteration in our ancestors. It was thought that a shift in selection was responsible for the rapid pace of molecular evolution.

    On the other hand, Mangan and his team have searched previously volatile parts of the genome. Unlike in other animals, humans’ brain sizes, limb lengths, and face proportions varied throughout time. The scientists used high-throughput sequencing and genome comparisons to hunt for DNA segments in these genomic locations that altered very fast after the chimpanzee and human lineages separated around 7.5 million years ago.

    Inherent HAQER in Our DNA

    Indeed, the team was able to single out almost 1,500 such passages. The acronym HAQER, which stands for “Human Ancestor Quickly Evolved Regions,” was given to these places. According to the findings, these regions of DNA have undergone some of the most rapid changes throughout the human genome. However, when exactly did this dramatic evolutionary leap occur on the timeline of early, or prehistoric, human development? Or did it occur before the divergence from chimpanzees?

    After human ancestry diverged from that of the chimpanzee, we subsequently developed the HAQER regions.

    This was confirmed by comparing the 13 most relevant sequences from Mangan’s HAQERs sections to those of Neanderthals, Denisova people, chimpanzees, and the reconstructed genome of the presumed common ancestor of humans and chimps.

    This means that the HAQERs originated after our ancestors diverged from those of the chimpanzee but before those of the Denisova people and Neanderthals. This means that these sequences were present in other early human and prehuman animals.

    Regulating the Nervous System and Digestive System

    So, why do we need the HAQER sequences? The researchers refer to these snippets of DNA as “regulatory DNA” because of their “switch-like” function. Specifically activating genes seems to be a result of this process. There are certain cell types where this occurs, as well as specific stages of development when this occurs. And sometimes it takes a shift in circumstances, as Mangan’s coworker Craig Lowe describes. There were certain gene switches in the human operating system that the HAQERs introduced.

    Research has shown that these gene switches play an important role in shaping the human nervous system, digestive system, and immune system. The gene switches empower us to fine-tune our responses to shifting environmental conditions.

    Typical Human Illnesses May Be Triggered by HAQERs

    What caused HAQERs to emerge? Rapid appearance of genomic areas often has one of two causes: either they are the result of local mutations or they are so beneficial to a species that they become established via natural selection. The scientists discovered support for both hypotheses in the newly described DNA sequences, indicating that the most diverse sections of the human genome were sculpted by a combination of these two processes.

    The researchers speculate that HAQERs, in making us humans, not only provided us with favorable qualities like huge brains, but also formed the foundation for common human disorders. Conditions including schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and unipolar depression may fall within this category.

    Mangan and his coworkers found that, although all people have very identical HAQER sequences, there are still some differences, and that these variations have a tendency to correspond with certain diseases. More study may be needed to determine the nature of the connection.

  • Jane Goodall: Primatologist Who Changed the Way We Look at Chimpanzees

    Jane Goodall: Primatologist Who Changed the Way We Look at Chimpanzees

    The world’s foremost authority on chimpanzees and one of the most inspirational scientists in history, Jane Goodall, was born on April 3, 1934, in London. Millions of people all across the globe have been inspired by the British lady, decades after she took the journey to Africa that altered her life. In honor of the famed ponytailed primatologist, here are interesting tidbits about Jane Goodall that you may not know.

    Jane Goodall was not destined to become a primatologist

    Jane, the daughter of an engineer and a writer, had to abandon her high school education in 1952 due to financial constraints. So, she enrolled in secretarial school and has since worked as a typist at Oxford University and at a documentary film studio. Her life was altered in May of 1956 when she visited a friend in Kenya.

    She has been passionate about animals since childhood

    Since she was very little, Jane has always had a deep love for all kinds of animals. Her father got her a teddy chimpanzee that she called Jubilee when she was two years old. Later on, when she was curious about where eggs came from, the small girl would often spend hours hiding out in the chicken coop.

    Jane Goodall with Gregoire
    Jane Goodall with Gregoire, a chimpanzee long left alone in a concrete cage at the Brazzaville Zoo in the Republic of Congo. Michael Nichols/National Geographic.

    Jane has often referred to her dog, Rusty, as her first and greatest instructor. Yet, she felt the same way about the wild creatures. As a result, she started fantasizing about traveling to Africa to study the local fauna for a book. She didn’t think twice about accepting her friend’s invitation to visit Kenya. During this journey, she met the guy who would forever alter the course of her life.

    She joined the ranks of Louis Leakey’s Trimates (Leakey’s Angels)

    Jane Goodall met the renowned anthropologist and paleontologist Louis Leakey during her time in Kenya. He was so impressed with her that he hired her to accompany him on a second journey to Africa, this time to the country of Tanzania, to hunt for fossils.

    The anthropologist suggested that Jane undertake a more extensive trip to research chimpanzees in Gombe National Park, Tanzania, in 1958. Jane, at 26 years old—the first of the “Trimates”—and her mother Vanne were to arrive there in July 1960. The anthropologist enlisted the help of three young women to do research on the great apes: Jane Goodall for chimpanzees, Dian Fossey for gorillas, and Biruté Galdikas for orangutans.

    She radically altered the way we understand chimpanzees

    Understanding chimpanzees required extensive fieldwork in their native habitat. The creatures were evasive, and the circumstances remained challenging. However, Jane Goodall’s studies eventually paid off. Although chimpanzees were traditionally supposed to be vegetarians, a young lady spotted them hunting and eating meat throughout the autumn.

    A few weeks later, she saw one of the animals use a tool to remove termites, something she had always assumed only humans could do. This is still one of Jane Goodall’s most significant findings. In her work, she showed that chimpanzees engage in sophisticated social interactions, have personality traits, and feel and convey emotions. The findings have altered our perception of distant relatives.

    Controversial discoveries

    Jane Goodall has been dogged by criticism of her study methods and conclusions since she first began pursuing them. Skeptics pointed out that she lacked formal science education as a major reason to doubt her competence. The primatologist, however, believes that her lack of experience is what enabled her to see chimpanzees in a new light.

    Experts at the time were eager to criticize her work because it challenged long-held beliefs not just about chimpanzees but also about what it meant to be human. Some people questioned her because she used a different technique than the standard procedures needed and because she gave the chimps names instead of numbers.

    Jane Goodall spent her time in Tanzania rectifying her deficiencies in scientific education. She pursued graduate studies in ethology (the study of animal behavior) at Cambridge University, from which she graduated with a doctoral degree in 1965.

    The longest field study on chimpanzees

    After starting out as a young lady studying chimpanzees in their natural habitat, Jane Goodall’s work eventually took on a new meaning. The primatologist established the Gombe Stream Research Center in 1965 to carry on studies of wild chimpanzees. Since then, several researchers have visited the institution, which is supervised by a team from Tanzania.

    Now, more than half a century later, it has been officially acknowledged by Guinness World Records as the longest field research ever undertaken on chimpanzees in their natural context. There were almost 165,000 hours of observation data recorded as of 2018. Jane Goodall has established many groups to protect chimpanzees from illegal trade and hunting.

    She was appointed United Nations Messenger of Peace

    Jane Goodall’s dedication to conservation and protecting the environment, as well as her extensive study, have both been recognized with multiple prizes. The primatologist was honored with the title of “United Nations Messenger of Peace” in 2002. She became a Dame Commander of the British Empire two years later. Besides the Unesco Gold Medal, she is also the recipient of France’s Legion of Honor and Japan’s famous Kyoto Prize.

    “Every individual makes a difference”

    Despite taking a break from studying chimpanzees, Jane Goodall is still actively working to protect wildlife and the natural world. She travels the equivalent of three centuries every day to give talks on the plight of chimpanzees and other creatures and the state of the planet’s ecosystems. The Jane Goodall Institute has been active since 1977 and has branches in more than 25 countries to help conserve animals and their habitats from a variety of dangers, including great apes.

    Also existing since 1991 is Roots & Shoots, an exceptional youth program. Jane Goodall’s mission in life is to spread the word that “Every individual matters. Every individual has a role to play. Every individual makes a difference.”

    The primatologist Jane Goodall has authored several books, the most well-known of which being Living Chimp Style. Also in 2017, a great documentary called Jane was made about Jane Goodall’s travels through Africa. It was directed by Brett Morgen and used historical footage from the National Geographic Society. 

  • Why Do Male Gorillas Beat Their Chests?

    Why Do Male Gorillas Beat Their Chests?

    In order to prevent fights, male gorillas would convey messages about their size to possible competitors by beating their chests. The mountain gorilla uses the pounding sound produced while beating its chest to communicate its size to other gorillas in the wild without having to actually see them. Unlike the croak of a frog or the roar of a lion, these chest beats may be easily heard and seen by onlookers.

    Dominant male gorillas engage in this behavior in order to impress females and scare their competitors. However, scientists were curious as to whether or not the drumming, which can reverberate for up to two miles in the dense jungle, was also a means by which the drumming gorillas communicated information about their own bodies.

    An Accurate Measurement of Gorilla Size

    Between January 2014 and July 2016, a group monitoring the gorilla population in Rwanda’s Volcanoes National Park for the Dian Fossey Foundation sighted and documented 25 “silverback” (a sign of adulthood) gorillas.

    Six of the males had their chest beats timed and analyzed for length, quantity, and frequency. There was a significant difference in the frequency of chest beats among gorillas of different sizes, as shown by the research published in the journal Scientific Reports.

    The scientists speculate that the bigger air sacs surrounding the larynxes of larger male gorilla can cause them to produce lower-frequency noises. In mountain gorillas, the rate at which their chests beat is a good indicator of their size.

    This knowledge might be used by partners or possible competitors to gauge each other’s size from a distance in the deep forest, where it is difficult for animals to see one another. It’s probably best for a male gorilla to observe a male competitor from afar if he wants to gauge the latter’s competitive potential.

    Being in the Right Place at the Right Time

    Scientists had to measure the size of wild gorillas without disturbing them too much by utilizing lasers and taking pictures to determine the distance between the monkeys’ shoulder blades in order to investigate a possible link between the size of gorillas and the resonance of their chest beats.

    They had to remain patient in order to capture the small bursts of sound that the chest made once every five hours. The researcher explains, they had to be in the right place at the right time. The recorded sound, though, was remarkable. And as a human, you measure its power perfectly.

    References

    1. Featured image: Eric Kilby | Flickr, Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic — CC BY-SA 2.0
    2. The shocking, real reason why gorillas pound their chests. (2021, April 8). New York Post.
    3. Study reveals hidden meaning of mountain gorillasʼ chest beats. (n.d.). Actualitat.
  • The Difference Between Chimpanzee and Bonobo

    The Difference Between Chimpanzee and Bonobo

    Although both chimpanzees and bonobos are members of the great ape family of the genus Pan, they are distinguished from one another in appearance and behavior. Pan troglodytes refers to the common chimpanzee (which encompasses four distinct chimpanzee subspecies), whereas Paniscus is the name given to bonobos.

    These apes, which are genetically quite similar to one another, split into two separate species around 1.5–2 million years ago, when the Congo River separated them geographically.

    The variations in appearance, diet, and sexual behavior grew increasingly obvious after that. Sadly, chimpanzees and bonobos have something in common. The International Union for the Conservation of Nature has designated both species as endangered due to human activities such as poaching and the destruction of their natural habitats.

    When Comparing Chimpanzees With Bonobos, There Are Several Noticeable Physical Distinctions

    A bonobo family
    A bonobo family

    When they reach adulthood, chimpanzees and bonobos have many distinct physical characteristics. Both have black fur and skin, hair everywhere except the feet, hands, and face, and disproportionately huge arms. Chimpanzees’ faces are pink while they are young and become brown as they age. Chimpanzees have noticeably bigger ears than humans do.

    The bonobo is not much smaller than its close relative, the chimpanzee, despite its other name, “pygmy chimpanzee.” Bonobos average roughly 40 inches (100 cm) in length and 81–88 pounds (37–40 kg) in weight, whereas chimpanzees may reach 47 inches (120 cm) in length and 88–110 pounds (40–50 kg) in weight. The bonobo gives off an air of deceptive fragility due to its smaller head and neck.

    Finally, the two relatives’ modes of movement are distinct from one another. While the bonobo is nimble on two legs, the chimpanzee is more comfortable moving about on four.

    Notable Variations in Habitat, Way of Life, and Sexuality

    A chimpanzee family
    A chimpanzee family

    From Senegal to South Africa, the chimpanzee may be found in a total of 21 African nations. The bonobo only lives in the wet woods of the southern Democratic Republic of the Congo.

    The bonobo follows a plant-based diet, whereas the chimpanzee eats a variety of foods.

    These two ape species are unique in that they are social animals. Nonetheless, they are not subject to the same regulations. To begin, unlike bonobos, where the females have the upper hand, chimpanzee males are the dominant force.

    Also, bonobos and chimpanzees use their sexuality in different ways. Bonobos use sex to settle disagreements (both between males and females and between the same sexes), while chimpanzees use physical force and aggression to show who is in charge.

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