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Monday, November 23, 2009

Photo: Butts, Faces Help Chimps Identify Friends


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Chimpanzees (above, a captive pair in France) never forget a face—or a behind, according to a September 2008 study.

In a recent experiment, primates could pair faces and posteriors with much greater frequency than chance alone—but only if the photos showed chimps they already knew.

Photo by Cyril Ruoso/Minden Pictures