Monkeys vs. Apes: What's the Difference?
When in doubt, check for a tail.
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Transcript
The chimpanzee and bonobo are our closest living relatives in the human family tree. Our DNA is nearly 99 percent identical, but do you know whether they’re monkeys or apes?
If not, no worries. There are a few differences you can use to tell a monkey from an ape and avoid offending any primates in the future.
The most obvious identifier is the tail, or lack thereof. Almost all monkeys have tails, but apes do not.
Some monkeys have tails long and strong enough to hold their body weight or grab food, while other monkeys’ tails are small nubs. No matter the kind of tail, if a primate has one, it’s strictly not an ape.
If the tail doesn’t give it away, monkeys and apes also have different body shapes. Monkeys are often smaller and narrow-chested, built for running across branches. Apes are generally larger and have broad chests and shoulder joints, enabling them to swing through trees.
Physical differences aside, monkeys and apes are unique in many invisible ways too.
Monkeys and apes both use sounds and gestures to communicate, but apes are generally considered more intelligent than monkeys. Most ape species exhibit some use of tools, and some individual apes have even been trained to learn human sign language.
There are almost 200 species of monkeys and only a handful of ape species. In this case, the process of elimination might be an equally successful way to go about identifying primates.
Listen closely, if the primate you’re putting a name to is not a human, gibbon, chimpanzee, bonobo, orangutan, or gorilla, and also not a lemur, loris, or tarsier, three primates that are neither apes nor monkeys, then that primate is a monkey.
If the list slips your mind, don't fret. You can always look at the tails.
If not, no worries. There are a few differences you can use to tell a monkey from an ape and avoid offending any primates in the future.
The most obvious identifier is the tail, or lack thereof. Almost all monkeys have tails, but apes do not.
Some monkeys have tails long and strong enough to hold their body weight or grab food, while other monkeys’ tails are small nubs. No matter the kind of tail, if a primate has one, it’s strictly not an ape.
If the tail doesn’t give it away, monkeys and apes also have different body shapes. Monkeys are often smaller and narrow-chested, built for running across branches. Apes are generally larger and have broad chests and shoulder joints, enabling them to swing through trees.
Physical differences aside, monkeys and apes are unique in many invisible ways too.
Monkeys and apes both use sounds and gestures to communicate, but apes are generally considered more intelligent than monkeys. Most ape species exhibit some use of tools, and some individual apes have even been trained to learn human sign language.
There are almost 200 species of monkeys and only a handful of ape species. In this case, the process of elimination might be an equally successful way to go about identifying primates.
Listen closely, if the primate you’re putting a name to is not a human, gibbon, chimpanzee, bonobo, orangutan, or gorilla, and also not a lemur, loris, or tarsier, three primates that are neither apes nor monkeys, then that primate is a monkey.
If the list slips your mind, don't fret. You can always look at the tails.