myelenchus: Monkey Montage

For those of you who know me well, you know that I love all animals, but monkeys and apes in particular. My background in Anthropology opened many academic doors to primates and primatology, but I also once had a job where I worked with primates, and have lived in several countries where they are prevalent. I've even visited Gombe stream, (the place where Jane Goodall did her studies on Chimpanzees), where I spent several days tracking Chimpanzees that I knew by name through the jungle. I love how human they are. They have such similar reactions to each other as humans, and although I am sure it is open to debate, even similar emotions to humans. And yet they are still animals, unencumbered by the complexities of the human mind and the layers added by culture and society. Although they express some things differently (a smile means fear rather than happiness etc.) once you learn the differences it becomes very revealing to watch them interact. I've seen them eat, sleep, explore, mate, fight, build, groom and nurture each other. When watching them I can see our root emotions, the most natural and sometimes basest parts of human nature in all it's ugliness and beauty. I could watch them all day long with such delight. So it made me very happy to find them so soon here in India. A troop of Macaques mostly moms and babies. I love the babies and how in a short span of time, just like human children, they can go through every emotion in the book. Think of how often you have felt these emotions... and you probably looked the same too! :)