![]() However, none of these fossils preserved completely intact limb bones, limiting how much insight researchers could glean regarding how these ancient species moved. Since the 1970s, paleontologists have unearthed many fossils of ape species from Europe and Africa, from the middle to late Miocene epoch about 13 million to 5.3 million years ago, when they think the ape and human lineages diverged. Related: In Photos: Hominin Skulls with Mixed Traits Discovered Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over. Get the world’s most fascinating discoveries delivered straight to your inbox. Future studies, they write, will focus on the grassy materials and weaving patterns that the primates use to create the ideal bedding for their lofty nests.Sign up for the Live Science daily newsletter now Additionally, the researchers suspect that dense foliage might shield them from the prying eyes of predators, insulate them on cold nights, and even deter some biting insects.įor now, the researchers have only investigated the chimps’ bed frames of choice. The chimps likely take advantage of all of those extra leaves for padding, the researchers think, and the branch shape would cradle them and prevent them from rolling out of bed. That species also had the smallest distance between its leaves, and its branches tend to form an upside-down tripod shape. The team statistically analyzed the data collected from the various nest sites and found that Ugandan Ironwoods provided the stiffest and most stress resilient branches-of all the nest harboring trees, the branches of the ironwood were most difficult to break. Clearly, the chimps saw something special in those relatively rare but highly preferred Ugandan Ironwoods. On the other hand, the most common tree, Beilschmiedia ugandensis, comprised more than 40 percent of the trees in the forest but accounted for just 16 of the nests the researchers sampled-less than one percent. But that species represents less than 10 percent of the trees in the habitats the researchers sampled in. Cynometra alexandri-colloquially known as Ugandan Ironwood-cradled more than 70 percent of the chimps’ nests. One tree species in particular dominated the nesting sites. All together, they gathered data from seven different tree species that the chimps used. They recorded the type of tree each of those nests occurred in, along with the physical characteristics of the trees, including branch stiffness and bending strength and leaf shape and density. The authors of the new study sampled 1,844 nests at Toro-Semliki Wildlife Reserve in southwest Uganda. Researchers have long suspected that chimps are pretty picky sleepers, but no one has quantified just what standards those animals look for in choosing a nightly nesting site. Rather, selecting a suitable place to sleep involves finding the perfect branch on the perfect tree-the princess, ensuring that her bed is free of any potential peas. As new research published in PLoS One reveals, any old tree in the forest will not satisfy a discerning chimp looking to construct his or her one-use-only nest. This time-consuming task involves bending and breaking stiff stems and interweaving it with foliage to create a thick, bouncy mattress-like structure.įinding a branch to build a nest and gathering fresh twigs and leaves-the animal equivalent to bed frames, blankets and pillows-each and every evening seems like tedious, tiresome tasks, but chimps go about it with a nitpicky reverence for detail. Like a ritualistic Ragnarok of slumber, each night chimps recreate their place of rest, constructing a brand new sleeping nest from scratch. ![]() But regardless of the particulars prior to turning off the lights, night after night, those activities usually lead us to the exact same place: the comfort and familiarity of our bed.Ĭhimpanzees, on the other hand, completely upturn a human’s ideal of preparing for a good night’s sleep. This might include things like showing, brushing teeth, flossing, getting a glass of water and setting an alarm.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |