Earth Touch Blog

Photography

Flickr group: pic of the day – baboon Apr 25 2008

Olive baboons (Papio anubis) are also called anubis baboons. They are widely spread throughout Africa, including Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Ghana, Kenya, Togo and Uganda.

Photography

Flickr group: pic of the day – baby mountain gorilla Mar 18 2008

This juvenile mountain gorilla (Gorilla beringei beringei) is one of the world’s most endangered animals. The IUCN Red List puts the number of this subspecies at fewer than 325 animals.

This image was added to our Flickr group by member Max Waugh.

Did you know?

Did you know? Gibbons Feb 20 2008

Unlike most apes, gibbons form monogamous, usually life-long partnerships. About 3% of mammal species, which number more than 4 000, are monogamous.

Featured on Earth-Touch

The week’s most viewed stories Jan 29 2008

The most popular stories on Earth-Touch in the past week (from Friday 18 January to Thursday 24 January 2008) were:

Number 1

Baboons in leadwood tree

Alert males keep watch, while others play and rest in the treetops.

Wildlife news from around the world

A boost for bonobos Dec 6 2007

The endangered bonobo (Pan paniscus) received a boost recently with the announcement of plans to create a giant reserve in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to safeguard the species.

Associated Press reports that US agencies, conservation groups and the Congolese government have come together to set aside about 30 570km² (11 803mi²) of tropical rainforest to help protect the bonobo, a rare great ape found only in the DRC.

Did you know?

Did you know? Baboons Dec 4 2007

Baboons and other primates are often seen grooming each other. Like all animals, baboons pick up parasites, so they groom to rid themselves of these as well as to clean and comb the fur.

Baboons remove seeds and large ticks from the fur of others when grooming, but some small parasites, such as fleas and lice, generally remain. Flakes of skin, salty deposits and scabs are often removed and eaten.

Featured on Earth-Touch

Baboon acrobatics Nov 27 2007

You can’t help smiling when watching a troop of chacma baboons (Papio ursinus) – they look so human as they groom each other and play.

Wildlife news from around the world

‘Escaped primate’ probably a large squirrel Nov 19 2007

The media across the United States of America has been abuzz with talk of a large, orange-coloured primate, possibly an orang-utan, loose in Florida’s Baker County. Several people have seen it. The local Florida Times-Union newspaper, for example, reported:

Featured on Earth-Touch

Earth-Touch serves first footage from Asia Nov 5 2007

Rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) have the widest distribution of any primate after humans, and are found across Asia, in India, Afghanistan, Thailand, China, Pakistan, Bhutan, Burma, Nepal, Bangladesh, Thailand, Laos, and Vietnam.

These highly intelligent Asian monkeys are found in many different climates and habitats and feed on seeds, fruits, herbs, roots and insects. In the wild, they live in troops of 12 to 20 animals usually consisting of females and babies, as the males leave the troop when they reach adulthood.

Featured on Earth-Touch

Monkeys play in dune forest Oct 3 2007

The dune forests along the Indian Ocean coastline of Southern Africa are home to a variety of animal and plant species. Watch the forest come alive in the clip, Monkeys play in dune forest wonderland.

In this diverse environment birds sing as the waves splash nearby.

Featured on Earth-Touch

View rare chorongo monkeys Oct 1 2007

Woolly monkeys, commonly known as chorongo monkeys in Ecuador, are found in the rainforests of the western Amazon River basin.

Wildlife news from around the world

Male chimps use stolen fruit to entice females Sep 18 2007

PICTURE: A male chimpanzee steals a papaya to give to a member of the opposite sex. Image: Courtesy Dr Kimberley Hockings/PLoS ONE

A two-year study in the Republic of Guinea in West Africa has revealed that male chimpanzees use stolen fruit to entice females for mating, LiveScience, BBC News and Reuters reported.

Wildlife news from around the world

Chimps can distract themselves when necessary, study shows Aug 28 2007

Just like people anticipating something exciting but having to wait for it, chimpanzees will find ways to keep themselves distracted ahead of receiving a delayed reward, a new study conducted by psychologists at Georgia State University in Atlanta shows.

The study, published in the journal Biology Letters, focused on four chimps waiting for sweets filling up in a dispenser, and which were able to busy themselves with toys, reports ScienceNOW Daily News.

Wildlife news from around the world

Crows display near-ape intelligence Aug 27 2007

New Caledonian crows have shown a reasoning ability that is akin to human and ape intelligence, a study by the University of Auckland has revealed.

The BBC reports on a study of these crows’ intelligence, in which seven of these crows were tested to see how they would access food when it was placed out of reach. They were given two tools – a short stick and a long stick – hidden in a box. Six of the seven chose the easiest route to the food on their first attempt, using the short stick to retrieve the long stick and using that in turn to take the food. 

Did you know?

Did you know? - Vervet monkey Aug 24 2007

The male vervet monkey develops a bright blue scrotum – a mark of adulthood he will always have thereafter – during adolescence. The brightness depends on an individual’s dominance and is related to testosterone production, and fades or brightens as an animal loses or gains dominance. A male vervet communicates dominance by sitting with his legs apart exposing his status to approaching males.