With fossils you could very well prove the course of evolution. However, if you want to show how or why a trend in motion, or just continue until the position is, you can use less fossil. For many years experts is that a source of disappointment was (and still is). For some, the disappointment is so strong they have to look elsewhere for answers.

The tooth of an Australopithecus

Robert was a breathtaking experience to the tooth of an Australopithecus in his hand. "Look," noted four years his elder brother John, "that, Rob, is something in the uterus of a female ancestor started. And that about 3 million years ago. "Did these ancient teeth now the same growth pattern as our modern human teeth? I mean ... it's something that was shaped and hardened in the mouth of an infant Australopithecus?" asked Robert. "Oh yes," replied John pedantic, "For the baby Australopithecus was certainly as annoying as the tooth through the gum came as in human babies. It caused pain and was after going through the gums get used to participate chewing. The 'milk teeth' in the early years of the Australopithecus, teeth so that eventually gave way to permanent teeth.

The owner of the tooth Australopithecus

"It must have happened," mused Robert. "The proof is here in the palm of my hand. It is hard, permanent record: brown spotted by time, worn by years of grinding. Roberts took the thoughts run wild and tried to catch a glimpse of the personality of the owner of this tooth. How did the owner? How he died? How was he seen by his contemporaries? And his life (by the standards of the Australopithecinae) a success or a failure? The tooth in his hand stared back. He said nothing.

The Chimpanzee as an object of study

"What would we learn a lot as a fossil tooth could tell" sighed Robert. "Unfortunately," assented John, "a tooth that can not. It is also the reason that scientists often look for the answer that the closest living relatives of humans among the primates studied. In particular, the most immediate of these, the chimpanzee. John resumed after a pause: "Did you know that scientists believe that the chimpanzee is the least specialized of the apes?" "Why, I do not get it," noted Robert. "That is to say," explained John, "that the chimpanzee is the one who probably most similar to the ancestors, where all the other great apes (and humans) to descend. In other words, if we look back far enough along the hominid line can the ancestor that we finally meet quite similar to the modern chimpanzee.

The characteristics of the chimpanzee

"But ..." asked Robert wondered aloud, "where scholars who look on, where they look at that apes and chimps with that?" The John amused that his brother Robert was so interested. "They pay attention not only on whether they identify the man himself (who, in a chimpanzee remained present are) able to find, but if they have a vague, distorted picture of how the man several million years ago could have been. and - equally important is -

They see if they can distinguish some ways in which man began to be otherwise. "

Study of primates

"The thoughts that primates to study anything to know about ourselves is not new," said John while on a high stool. "Already in the twenties of the last century, observed Robert Yerkes tame chimpanzees in the United States and looked at Solly Zuckerman baboons in the London Zoo. Both scientists provided major contributions in the field of primatology. But she (and others) were gradually the belief that they complex relationships in the society of primates in the wild were studied.

Eugene Marais

"Yes, but there was a Nobel laureate who had done something with baboons?" Robert interrupted. "Well, what almost no one knew then was that someone has already begun to study primates in the wild," replied John. "A certain Eugene Marais (an unknown eccentric South African poet) studied already in 1905 the behavior of baboons. But Marais had insufficient resources and by illness he became addicted to drugs. Although Eugene some important contributions to knowledge about the baboon (and also termites), his work was almost universally ignored. "

Maurice Maeterlinck

"Was that the Nobel laureate Eugene Huppeldepup? Oh no?" Robert wanted to know. "No," replied John. "Ironically, one of the few people doing the work of Eugene Marais not ignored the Belgian Nobel laureate. It was the writer Maurice Maeterlinck, the study results of stable and Eugene Marais as his own work published."

The study of primates

"Okay," continued Robert. "So the writer and Nobel Prize winner Maurice Maeterlinck and committed plagiarism, the honor actually to Eugene Marais ...". "The organized scientific field studies of primates," replied John without going to the comment of Robert, "started in 1930 by full-time scientists. CR Carpenter did when pioneering work with his study of gibbons in Thailand and howler monkeys on Barro Colorado Island In the area of the Panama Canal. Only after World War II the idea was well developed and wandered a large number of young field workers (many of whom have international standing would acquire) from around the world by universities and museums of a dozen countries. They studied gibbons and orangutans in Southeast Asia, India and langur in gorillas, chimpanzees, baboons and many forest monkeys in Africa. In Central and South America were tested in the monkeys of the New World. " "Ah, piece of cake," Robert said as he rose and stretched. "Not at all," said John again. "It was far more difficult to primates to study than anyone ever imagined. Many of these wild animals such as mountain gorillas live in inaccessible places. Many live in the treetops of the jungle, where they are almost invisible. Other such as the orang-utan, are extremely rare. Most are shy. "

Ring-tailed Lemur

"All right, Professor!" Robert nodded. "I happen to know that the ancestor of all primates was a sort of ring-tailed lemurs.
That animals with small brains and his eyes are set laterally, that is still alive, reminding us of the ancestor of all primates. Mr Ramage said that, our biology teacher, and .. "Robert interjected himself while he was a framed text." The greatest events take place without any plan, chance makes good mistakes again ... The events of the world are not deliberately causes: they happen "he read aloud and finished" A quote from C. Lichtenberg.

Chimpanzee, the ape

Chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) are among the great apes and is the best known species. Of all the apes like chimpanzees to humans most. In the wild they are 45 years and in captivity about 50 years.

Body

Chimpanzees in the wild, weigh about 40 pounds, with a maximum of 70 kilos. In captivity they often weigh a lot more: about 90 pounds. It also differs by gender. Males usually weigh ten pounds more than females. Their standing 1.5 meters chimpanzees are smaller than a human.
The thumb is in a chimpanzee hand across the fingers. This enables them to grasp things very carefully, which is useful for the fruit picking or holding arms. On the knuckles of a chimpanzee's calluses, this is because they support them when walking. Just like humans, are the feet of a chimpanzee wide. Their toes are much longer, and the big toe acts as a sort of thumb. Like the hands, they can with their feet to grasp things easily.

Chimpanzees, like the other great apes no tail. The buttocks are fully exposed, something that is clearly visible in females. If they are fertile they get a huge pink swelling on their buttocks, making them a great attraction to the males.

A chimpanzee looks about as good as humans. He can smell and hear better. Because chimpanzees have no hair on their face, clearly show that, as in humans, differences in skin color are. There are black, brown and white chimpanzees.

Types

The chimpanzee has no subspecies. There is a monkey who looks a lot like him: the bonobo. Sometimes he will be seen as a second chimpanzee species. Another name for this monkey pygmy chimpanzee, although he was almost as large as the chimpanzee. Bonobos live in jungles in Africa where no ordinary chimpanzees occur.

Food

A chimpanzee spent about seven hours a day to gather food. They eat mainly ripe fruits. But leaves, bark, seeds, flowers, nuts, insects, eggs and honey are on their menu. That a chimpanzee is intelligent, proves the following: because termites and insects often hide in their nest and bite them if she wants a chimpanzee suits, they use a stick. That they push for a part in the cave, and then prosecuting him. The insects or termites, the chimpanzee who sit there now easily lick.

Although chimpanzees little animal food, they also hunt several times a year on birds, small antelope, boar, even monkeys. Because chimpanzees are difficult to move quickly through the trees by their heavier weight, often in groups to hunt monkeys. This makes it easier for the much faster monkey suits.

Community

After a gestation period of 7 ½ to 8 months of her like a young chimpanzee. The female spent a lot of attention to raising her young. After seven months, a young chimpanzee has a little walking, but usually carries his mother on her back. Each day, she with him a distance of three kilometers away to collect food. Although chimpanzees in groups of 15 to 50 live animals, the foraging usually done with the whole family (about 6 people), but the male pulls out more often. Evening chimpanzees sleep alone or with their young. Mother protects her young until one year or eight. Then he is old enough to care for zcihzelf.

Chimpanzees often attract several other chimps around. There are sometimes large groups of 100 animals. Such a group is called a loosely group. Males protect the group against invaders. It is very rare that they encounter other groups. In the group itself, the males compete for leadership. The most popular male is often the leader of the group of chimpanzees. While feeding, the Group separates itself and usually join the chimps themselves again to other groups.

Setting

Chimpanzees in western and central Africa. There they live in forests, dense jungles, open savannahs and mountain forests. They come as long as there is enough fruit to find. Most of the days are busy with chimpanzees eat fruit and food gathering. In the afternoon they end up with some leaves, then in the evening a bed of leaves. Then they sleep in the nest all night. Chimpanzees replace almost every evening nest of leaves. That way, they are assured that no animals such as lice in sit.

Chimpanzees usually remain on the ground. Although they can climb well and often over quickly, it is difficult for them to use their weight from one tree to another jump. So they see food in a tree hang down, they get that, then they come down to their trip across the ground to continue.

Friends and Foes

The greatest enemy of the chimpanzee is man. With the increasing population and lack of arable land, large parts of the forest where the chimpanzees live cut. This makes the chimpanzee habitat vand e seriously reduced. The trade in bushmeat (meat from the forest ") plays an important role. Many animals in the tropical rainforest, including gorillas, antelopes, pigs and therefore the chimpanzee, are slain for their meat. In many African cities such meat, known as bushmeat sold.

Threats and Protection

The chimp is seriously threatened in several ways. For example, many chimpanzees used as a model. Tourists can then charges with a chimp in the photo. The killing of chimpanzees for their meat is half threat, especially since chimpanzees reproduce slowly.
The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) is fighting primarily to preserve the forests and against the hunting of chimpanzees. She also tries to trade in meat (bushmeat) counter.

• Written by Geetha.
• In category Animals.
• 13 years ago.

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