Watching evolution can be pretty incredible. Just trying to understand what’s going on in the world around us can be strange, but so fascinating. However, evolution never sleeps; it seems it’s been happening with monkeys in front of our very eyes, and we didn’t even realize.
Capuchin Monkeys Have Been Using Stone Tools
For quite some time now, it seems that certain types of monkey have been using stone tools for various everyday activities. It has mostly been for food purposes, but scientists have tracked that the way these animals have been using these tools has changed over time.
They Have Done This For Generations
The start of this kind of development is thought to be around 3,000 years ago, when monkeys would use stones to hit a small object. They would also use a larger stone beneath as a kind of anvil for their activities. There was then a long period where it seems as if primates stopped using this tactic, however, it got picked up a while later or rediscovered. About 257 years ago, it seemed as if monkeys were using heavier stones and bigger rocks as anvils to get into harder foods.
Humans Had Been In The Area
What researchers found interesting was that humans had also been in the area, making it hard to know whether the animals picked the idea of using stone tools from them, or whether it was the other way round. Three years ago it was discovered that Capuchin monkeys had picked this up, but that their ancestors had been doing it for some time now. It turns out that they’re not the only monkeys that do this and that various other monkey species also do this.
We wonder what the next development will be.