Animals treat themselves with plants – a behavior humans have observed and imitated for millennia

When a wild orangutan in Sumatra recently suffered a wound to his face, presumably after a fight with another male, he did something that caught the attention of the scientists observing him. The animal chewed on the leaves of a liana – a plant not normally eaten by monkeys. Over several days, the orangutan carefully … Read more

Animals treat themselves with plants – a behavior humans have observed and imitated for millennia

When a wild orangutan in Sumatra recently suffered a wound to his face, presumably after a fight with another male, he did something that caught the attention of the scientists observing him. The animal chewed on the leaves of a liana – a plant not normally eaten by monkeys. Over several days, the orangutan carefully … Read more

Animals treat themselves to plants – behavior that humans have observed and imitated for millennia

When a wild orangutan in Sumatra recently suffered a facial wound, apparently after a fight with another male, he did something that caught the attention of the scientists who were observing him. The animal was chewing on the leaves of a liana, a plant not normally eaten by monkeys. Over several days, the orangutan gently … Read more

Animals treat themselves to plants – behavior that humans have observed and imitated for millennia

When a wild orangutan in Sumatra recently suffered a facial wound, apparently after a fight with another male, he did something that caught the attention of the scientists who were observing him. The animal was chewing on the leaves of a liana, a plant not normally eaten by monkeys. Over several days, the orangutan gently … Read more

Animals treat themselves to plants – behavior that humans have observed and imitated for millennia

When a wild orangutan in Sumatra recently suffered a facial wound, apparently after a fight with another male, he did something that caught the attention of the scientists who were observing him. The animal was chewing on the leaves of a liana, a plant not normally eaten by monkeys. Over several days, the orangutan gently … Read more