Monkey Feet, Ape Climbing | Science News

New video evidence from West Africa is shaking up our understanding of early human evolution: mangabeys—monkeys without chimp-like flexible ankles—are mastering vertical climbs on narrow trees, proving that ape-specific foot anatomy isn’t the only path to tree-climbing mastery. This discovery challenges long-held assumptions and suggests our last common ancestor with chimps might have been more monkey-like than thought. With footage captured in Ivory Coast showing midfoot flexion of up to 46 degrees, scientists now see that functional climbing can emerge through diverse anatomies. It’s a reminder that bipedalism didn’t erase our climbing roots—and that the debate over whether our ancestors were monkey- or ape-like may need more fossils to settle, since nature often finds clever workarounds. Listen in comfort:Get a discount on a Soli Pillow: http://solipillow.com/discount/dnn. Advertise on DNN:[email protected] This is an automated, high-level news summary based on public reporting.Report issues to [email protected]. View sources & latest updates:https://sources.thednn.ai/f163127a5debbb3a