Apes

Apes come from Old World Monkeys, about 25 million years ago. They are commonly confused with Monkeys, but there are several diferences.

1. Apes have no tail
2. Ape are larger than monkeys, and they weigh more
3. Apes have a more upright body posture and stance. They stand up with their knuckles. Monkeys usualy walk around on their hands.
4. Apes rely more on their vision then their sense of smell. Monkeys have a snout, which allow them to smell things farther away. Apes have a nose similar to a human, so they rely on vision and hearing instead
5. Apes tend to be less aboreal and more territorial then monkeys. They protect their land and family. They also spend less time in the trees than monkeys.This has led to many changes in the muscle and skeletal structure of their arms because they are not as adapted for tree-dwelling as monkeys are. The Pongidae family (orangutans) are the only ape that spend most of their time in the trees.

The Great Apes

Great apes are a subgroup from the larger group, apes. Primates include Humans, Monkeys, and Apes, while the Great Apes are olny made of a few of the largest apes. The Great Ape family is made up of Humans, Gorrillas, Orangutans, Bonobos, and Chimpanzees.

The Lesser Apes

The Gibbon is the only species in the Lesser Ape family. The Gibbon is only classified as a Lesser Ape due to its size. A large Gibbon is smaller than a small Bonobo, which is the smallest of the Great Ape family. Let's take a deeper look into each iduvidual species of the Great Apes, and a better look at the Gibbon.

The Gorilla

Gorillas despite their large size, are extremely gentle when unprevoked. They display several human behaviors and emotions, like happiness, anger, and sadness. They are incredebaly social creatures, and travel in large families, called a troop. Each troop has about 10 Gorillas in it. The leader of a Gorilla troop is known as the Silverback. They get that name from the silver sheen on their back. They are extremely strong creatures, and the biggest Great Ape, with adult males weing in at 300-500 pounds. Adult females weigh in at 150-200 pounds. Gorillas live in Africa, and they are separated by 650 miles of Congo Basin Forest. Each sepcies of Gorilla has an upland and lowland sub species. The Western Lowland Gorilla is the smallest of the species. They weigh at about 400 pounds. They are also the most populas species of Gorilla. The Eastern Gorillas are slightly larger, and they weigh at about 480 pounds. The Mountain Gorilla is the largest and the rarest of all the Gorilla subspecies. It's common for a Mountain Gorilla to weigh over 500 pounds. They are found at high up in the Virunga Volcano range that separates Democratic Republic of the Congo from Rwanda and Uganda. Their hair is longer, and a few shades darker from their Western and Eastern counterparts. Mountain Gorillas are taller, and they have a more pointed head than other species. They also lack the reddish patch of fur on their heads that are common to Lowland Gorilas.

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The Orangutan

The name Orangutan means "man of the forest" in the Malay language.The Orangutan is known by their distinctive orange fur and big flanges on their face. Flanged males have large cheek flackes and a throat sac, for making loud calls. The Orangutan are the world's largest arboreal mammal. It has long arms, and feet with opposable thumbs, which make climbing and swinging through trees easy. These Great Apes share 94 percent of our genes and are incredebly intelegent. Orangutans have even been known to use tools in the wild, like using leaves as gloves to pick up pointy objects, like a Durian. They even use leaves as a hat to keep themselves dry in the rain. Orangutans are much smaller than gorillas, with a large male only being 200 pounds. Their diet is mostly fruit based. They feast on wild fruits like lychees, mangosteens, and figs, and slurp water from holes in trees. They make nests up in the trees out of vegetation to sleep in during the night. There are three different species of orangutan. The Bornean and Sumantran Orangutans differ a little in apperance. Sumantran Orangutans and Bornean Orangutans both have shaggy, long orange fur. Sumantran Orangutans have longer facial hair. Sumantran orangutans have smaller flanges as well. They are also known to have closer social bnds than their Bornean cousins. Bornean orangutans are on the ground more. They come down from the trees to walk oround and scavange. A third species of orangutan was announced in November, 2017. With no more than 800 individuals in existence, the Tapanuli orangutan is the most endangered of all great apes. Both species have experienced sharp population declines. A century ago there were probably more than 230,000 orangutans in total, but the Bornean orangutan is now estimated at about 104,700.

ORANGUTAN Photographer: Kabir Bakie Location: Cincinnati Zoo Date: July 2005 {{Cc-by-sa-2.5}}

The Chimpanzee

Chimanzees, or Chimps are very close relatives to us humans. They are our clostest cousins, sharing 98 percent of our DNA. Like us, they are incredebly social and intelegent creatures. They care for their offspring for years, and can live to be up to 50 years old. Chimpanzees live in the forests in Central Africa. When they do come down, they walk on all fours, however, Though able to walk upright, chimpanzees more often move about on all fours, leaning forward on the knuckles of their hands (knuckle walking). Chimpanzees awaken at dawn, and their day is spent both in the trees and on the ground. Like Orangutans, they have been known to use tools. They use sticks to fish Termites out of dirt mounds, and leaves to drink water. Chimps are much smaller than Orangutans and Gorillas, with the average male Chimpanzee being only 1.7 meters tall (3.5 feet) and weigh about 30-60 kilograms (70-130 pounds). Chimpsrely on their dextorus hands and feet to get around. The fastest way for a Chimp to travel is by swinging from trees and branches. Their human-like hands make it easy to grab the branches. At night, Chimpanzees rest in the nests they build up in the trees. Chimps can't swim, but they can wade in shallow water. Chimpanzees also hunt, alone and in groups. Chimpanzees also appear to use plants to cure diseases.

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The Bonobo

Bonobos and Chimpanzees are often confused with one another due to their similar looks. Like Chimps, Bonobos share 98 percent of their DNA with humans. Bonobos are smaller, leaner, and darker than Chimps. Chimpanzees lead a more violent life, with many conflicts, but Bonobos are very peacful and rarly fight, or invade another Apes territory. Bonobos are a mostly female socioty, with only a few male Bonobos. Bonobo are endangered, with only 10,000 to 50,000 left. They are the smallest of the Great Apes They are only 71 centimeters tall (35 inches), and only 30 kilograms (68 pounds).

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The Gibbon

The Gibbons are known as the Lesser Apes because they are very small compared to the Great Apes. They are only seventeen to twenty five inches tall, and only sixty pounds. Compared to the three houndred pound gorilla, thats tiny. There are over twelve recongnized species of Gibbon. All Gibbons are have a coat that varies in color from cream to black.These acrobatic apes adapted to live most of their lives in the trees. They have very strong hook-like hands for gripping branches, and their shoulder joints adapted to swing from tree to tree. This movement is called locomotion, and it can move a Gibbon at thirty-five miles an hour! The Gibbon is actually what most of us think of when me picture an average monkey in our heads.



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What you can do to help

Ape populations are dropping fast. Deforestation is destroying their homes, and it's leaving them exposed to poachers. To help save the apes, you can help by donating to non-profit organizations like this one. World Ape Fund