Stone monkeys make tools as mature as humans

Under conditions of scarcity of food, primates discovered stone uses and accidentally entered the "Stone Age", according to an international study.

Monkeys thought to be the fourth animal (outside humans) have made significant strides when regularly taking sharp stones into their purpose.

The white-faced capuchin monkeys on Jicaron island use stone to break hard food - (Video: Research team).

Scientists have noticed capuchin monkeys (also known as monk monkeys because of the dark hairs on their heads) about their ability to use stone tools in recent years.

To verify, an international team of experts - including scientists at Max Planck Research Institute, Germany, observed white-faced capuchin monkeys in Coiba Island National Park, Panama.

They put cameras on three islands (oiba, Jicaron and Rancheria in the park to study this monkey behavior.

In 3 observation locations, only monkeys on the island of Jicarón reveal the ability to use stone tools. This led experts to believe that primates (including the ancestors of the ancestors) may have casually used stone tools and entered the Stone Age.

Images show that white-faced monkey hats work with many different stone tools - (Photo: BIORXIV).

Experts believe that there are several agents that play a role in promoting monkeys on the island of Jicarón to try using stone tools.

Accordingly, in the absence of predators, this primate has plenty of free time to wander, exploring life around. When food is relatively scarce, it is necessary to use ice to separate seeds or shells of crustaceans.

Share on New Scientist, TS. Brendan Barrett, a representative of the expert group, said: "We were surprised to find that these behaviors seem to be related to geography. The long-tailed macaque in Thailand, the western African chimpanzee and some species of capuchin monkeys in South Africa also use stone as a tool to exploit food ".

Scientists believe that the capuchin monkey group and the "capless" monkey group developed in two different branches about 6.2 million years ago. Coincidentally, around this time, humans also separated from the closest ancestors of chimpanzees and Bonobo gibbons (dwarf chimpanzees).

The current "hat" monkeys with four typical species all use stone tools.

Use ice to separate nuts and some other foods - (Photo: BIORXIV).

Stone, wood and seashell tools used by monkeys to preserve food - (Photo: BIORXIV).