Anytime I discuss my career with a new person, almost 100% of the time their reaction will consist of something along the lines of, “I love monkeys!” or a joke about “monkey business”. While sometimes I can correct people, I often just accept defeat, smile, and nod along. Chimpanzees are not monkeys! However, both chimpanzees and monkeys belong to the taxonomic order of Primates, which I assume is where the common misconception stems from.
When looking at a primate, an easy way to determine if it is a monkey or not, is if it has a tail. Nearly all monkeys have tails, while apes do not.
Another great indicator is the overall body shape, size, and how they move. Apes are much larger than monkeys, with wide chests and bare faces. Apes can move both bipedally, on two feet, or on all fours. Monkeys are smaller, have smaller chests, and some use their tails for balance or to help grab branches as they navigate through the trees.
Great apes include humans, chimpanzees, gorillas, bonobos, and orangutans. There are also small-bodies apes, such as gibbons and siamangs.
Apes also have a larger brain than monkeys. Research studies show that apes are capable of higher levels of cognition and communication.
For more information, here is a great resource that allows you to click through different primates.
Now on to some photos of the day…
Terry standing bipedally in the sunny Riverview Greenhouse
Volunteer Krissy set up some pre-made nests for Jamie’s group this morning. Missy immediately claimed this spot!
Oh, Burrito
Yeah, Jenna, I gave up trying to explain why teachers don’t really have “the whole summer off!”
this was an argument that someone was putting forth in a YouTube thread a few weeks back, insisting that due to a prior classification system, monkeys and apes are the same. That all apes are monkeys but not all monkeys are apes. no matter how many times people said it, they just wouldn’t listen.
Thanks for the lovely pics of a boy and his thoughts
On a dark, cold, very stormy evening, no one can put a smile on our faces like
Mr. B! Longing for some of the sunshine Terry was basking in, as well:wink:?
……beautiful nest…… but I see the teddy bear fell:wink: victim to someone
staff may have removed them, if they were something that The Chimps could remove and swallow
maybe a troll did it
Thanks for your input and pics, Jenna, and thanks also to Krissy for that very lovely pre-made nest! It looks so warm & cozy & welcoming for “someone” to cuddle up in and perhaps even beat the stuffing out of! Great pics of Bubba. That guy just makes me smile no matter what he’s doing (well, they all do in their own ways, but you know sometimes there’s a special “something” that happens…)
Oh, the indignity! Somewhere I have the same book that provoked Cy to alarm-call last Sunday. I heartily sympathize with Cy:. The title (“Gorillas, Monkeys and Apes”) is confusing. But, of course gorillas are apes, so what are all those monkeys doing in that book?! I have no doubt that inclusion offended Cy’s literary sensibilities.
Speaking of books, Jenna, were you able to facilitate another Friday story hour for Cy and Co.? You drew quite a rapt audience last Friday, at least for a minute or two. Perhaps your audience was read to during their Southern California itinerary, albeit en Espanol? Just a thought…after all, a couple of weeks back, Cy appeared to be enthrall to an issue of Hola magazine.
Thank you for a much needed correction and education on Chimpanzees v. Monkeys.
Tell Burrito I said hi.
I can’t believe I didn’t know about the “lesser apes”!!
:monkey_face::see_no_evil:
Just last night I was called the monkey lady (lovingly, by dear friends) and I said no, the ape lady. And rattled off the five greats. and the tail/no tail difference. But I didn’t know about the lesser apes! I guess that’s why there is a “great” in front of the larger apes.
Oh dear Burrito. If you only could see the smile on my face, If only you knew what joy you bring to all.
One thing I think we can all agree on….Burrito is full of monkey business!
I purchased a children’s book on Jane Goodall for a friend of mine whose child was turning one year old. Coming from me, I knew she would get a chuckle out of the subject matter. Displayed right next to the books was a pile of stuffed plush monkeys. I grabbed a book and as I was checking out asked the cashier if they had any stuffed chimpanzees. Of course, she directed me to the pile of monkeys next to the books. I looked at her and giggled and pointed out that the toys were monkeys. She looked at me like I was nuts. I knew where this was going but still replied that, no, this wasn’t what I wanted, I wanted a stuffed chimpanzee. She asked me what the difference was. I picked up the monkey and showed her the tail saying chimpanzees do not have tails, monkeys do. There was a moment of silence. She looked at me and then looked the monkey and I saw the lightbulb go off! She laughed saying the difference never dawned on her. We chuckled and I mentioned that the book is intended to teach children about Dr. Jane Goodall, so the store needed to get toy chimpanzees. Then I told her about CSNW and she had so many questions. It was a fun interchange.
haha, I have had more than one exchange with people at work or at the post office, usually, about why I am sending things to or buying things for chimpanzees!
I’m so impressed with the picture of Terry, there must be something mighty interesting above. I think the picture belongs in a magazine…so beautiful ?.
It drives me crazy, too, when I see apes being called monkeys! Being that we only have a handful of apes, it’s easy to ask oneself, “Is it an orang, gorilla, chimp, bonobo, or gibbon? No? Then it’s a monkey! Easy peasy.