African great apes are some of the most iconic creatures on Earth. Humans’ closest living relative, these majestic primates are becoming increasingly impacted by climate change. In the next three decades, African apes will experience more extreme events such as heat waves, wildfires and flooding, according to a new study led by Razak Kiribou, a […]
Tag: apes
MMORPG Soundscapes: Creating Realistic and Immersive Virtual Environments
In the vast and exciting Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPG), players are transported to realms full of adventure, magic and the unknown. But beyond the stunning visuals and intricate gameplay, there is an aspect that often goes unnoticed but deeply shapes our experience: soundscapes. Carefully designed and expertly integrated, these sonic tapestries are the […]
World’s newest great ape faces habitat loss, multiple threats: Will it survive?
JAKARTA — When scientists made the bombshell announcement in 2017 that the Tapanuli orangutan (Pongo tapanuliensis) was a new species, the apes were immediately put under the global spotlight. With fewer than 800 individuals surviving in a tiny tract of forest in the western part of Indonesia, scientists declared the Tapanuli orangutan as the rarest […]
Malaria infection harms wild African apes, study shows
Endangered great apes get malaria, just like humans. New evidence from wild bonobos shows us the infection harms them, too. Malaria is a devastating disease caused by parasites transmitted through the bites of infected mosquitos. For humans, symptoms start out mild—fever, headache and chills—but malaria infection can be fatal within 24 hours. For apes, little […]
What can Half or Whole Earth conservation strategies do for orangutans?
Orangutans, like most of the world’s great apes, are struggling. Their numbers continue to drop as their habitat disappears, or they’re killed by humans for food, out of fear or for self-defense. And it’s happening despite an estimated $1 billion in spending on concerted orangutan conservation efforts since 2000. The ongoing slide has left biologists […]
Discovered in the deep: the crustacean with eyes for a head
The inky depths of the ocean’s twilight zone are home to fist-sized shrimp-like crustaceans with ridiculously big eyes. Most of Cystisoma’s head is taken up by its eyes – all the better for seeing in the dark. “The bigger you make your eye, the more likely you are to catch any photons that are out […]
Beyond bored apes: Blockchain polarizes wildlife conservation community
How do you raise funds for wildlife conservation in the most 21st century of ways? Non-fungible tokens, or NFTs. In the northeastern forests of South Africa, Wild Funds Tomorrow, a U.S.-based nonprofit, has done just that. Since 2017, the organization has been trying to raise funds to purchase land, remove fencing and clear vegetation to […]
POLL: Should elephant and ape captivity be banned?
Naturalist and expert Jane Goodall is throwing her support behind a new bill in Canada. Manitoba Senator Murray Sinclair is pushing for an ambitious animal welfare reform that includes banning the captivity of apes and elephants in the country. Called the “Jane Goodall Act,” the bill would ban zoos and similar entities from getting new […]