Endangered blonde capuchins devise novel tool use

Endangered blonde capuchins living in Brazil's Atlantic Rainforest have been observed performing two methods of tool use never before witnessed in any non-human primate.

Researcher Antonio Souto, of the Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, documents two complex and spontaneous methods of termite fishing in his paper, published today in Biology Letters.

Tool modification and usage in capuchins is well documented but this social group displayed two entirely novel uses; nest tapping and stick rotation.

Souto regularly observed three out of the six monkeys climbing a tree and hitting a termite nest, before rotating a stick inside the nest, maximising the number of termites caught.

Souto believes the behaviour of these blonde capuchins, of whom there are only 180 left worldwide, could cause primatologists to permanently revise accepted tool use theories.

The full scientific paper, published in Biology Letters by Souto et al on March 8th 2012, can be found here: Critically endangered blonde capuchins fish for termites and use new techniques to accomplish the task

Gorilla genome may unlock the mystery of abstract thought

The last ape genome sequence - that of the lowland gorilla - was published today by a research team in Cambridge.

The researchers hope their work will finally reveal the genetic mutations that led humans to develop higher functions such as language and culture.

The article, published today in Nature, confirms that chimpanzees are our closest relatives, sharing 99 per cent of our DNA.

Gorillas share 98 per cent and orangutans 97 per cent, reflecting the evolutionary timeline of apes in the pattern the researchers had expected.

However, this new research shows human separation from common ancestors occurring earlier than previously thought, which challenges some widely held evolutionary theories.

Researchers hope that by comparing shared genetic mutations with those developed after a split in lineage they may uncover the genetic basis of 'higher reasoning' in humans.

Read the full research article by Scally et al, published in Nature on 7th March 2012:  Insights into hominid evolution from the gorilla genome sequence

Teamwork may be the key to man's advantage over other primates

New research shows that teamwork - rather than intelligence - could hold the key to man's developmental advantage over other primates.

The study found that nursery school children repeatedly beat apes and capuchins in complex puzzles because of their tendancy to co-operate and learn from each other.

The researchers, from St Andrews University, designed the experiment to represent the structure of man's uniquely evolved society.

Each increasingly complex puzzle was built upon skills learnt in previous tasks, whilst the rewards available became increasingly more desirable.

Results showed that although primates have the ability to learn from each other - as shown in their natural hunting and foraging practises - they generally chose not to.

Read the full story here:  http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2108793/Teamwork-brainpower-secret-ingredient-gave-Man-advantage-apes-say-researchers.html?ito=feeds-newsxml