Swimming apes! Yes, apes can learn to swim and dive just like humans.
We once believed apes to be afraid of the water. Zoos use motes full of water to keep apes securely detained. But recently a couple of biologists discovered that apes can swim. Perhaps they always had the ability but not the know-how. Is it just a matter of learning how to swim?
Apes Swimming Style Similar To Humans
Two apes in separate geographical locations have been filed swimming. One was filmed in Missouri diving into a swimming pool and using swimming techniques similar to the breaststroke. The other was filed in swimming 12 meters in a private zoo in South Carolina.
Apes like humans are not born knowing how to swim. To become a confident swimmer, humans learn to trust that the water will hold us when we move or float. Perhaps apes did not need to develop this type of relationship with water. One reason may be diet.
Humans eat fish and have since the dawn of time. Therefore, the need to learn how to swim is part of survival. Apes, on the other hand, prefer a diet found on land. This includes nuts, roots, insects, leaves, rodents, and even an occasional bird. Ao swimming is not necessary for survival.
Other Cool Things Apes Can Do
Apes shake their heads to say “no” in the same way a human might do so. Apes have been observed shaking their head no to their young to show disapproval of an action. But the behavior is not all negative. Apes can laugh. Scientists have documented an automatic reflex laugh caused by tickling.
“Perhaps the most humanlike behavior is the laughing by apes when they are being tickled,” de Waal told LiveScience. “It is low-pitched compared to human laughter, but the facial expression and the waxing and waning of the laughing sounds are eerily human to the point that those of us familiar with these vocalizations cannot stop ourselves from laughing, too.”
Most Amazing Cognitive Abilities Of Apes
You may have heard of Koko the famous gorilla that could use sign language to communicate and had a vocabulary of 1,000 words. Did you know that primates have cognitive abilities? And Koko, though extraordinary, was not alone in her ability to learn.
Primates plan for the future. Well, at least the immediate future. They can remember and figure out things such as the purpose of a small hand tool. Primates have even made their own tools to dig up termites. It’s not on my list of favorite foods, but to apes they are kind of tasty.
Apes can do much more than swim. They can learn sequencing and patterns. Primates can recognize themselves in mirrors. Apes can recognize pictures and learn action versus consequences of the action.
Primates develop autonoetic consciousness. They understand self. “The concept of self is an integral part of having goals and desires, intentionally acting to achieve those goals, and knowing whether they have succeeded. This sense of self is an integral part of self-determination and autonomous behavior.” Read more about the cognitive abilities of apes here.
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