Field Notes: My Time with Titis
What is it like to study titi monkeys in the Amazon Rainforest? Leakey Foundation grantee David Wood says the worst part is the sweat bees.
Raymond Dart’s 1973 Lecture, “The Discovery of Australopithecus and Its Implications”
Raymond Arthur Dart (1893-1988) announced, described, and named the first discovery of an Australopithecine in the February 7, 1925 issue of Nature. The now iconic specimen consisted of a partial fossilized face, jaw, and cast of the interior of the braincase of a young child from Taung, which Dart assigned to a new genus and species called Australopithecus africanus.
Human skin stood up to the sun before there were sunscreens and parasols – Nina Jablonski explains why
Human beings evolved under the sun. Sunlight was a constant in people’s lives, warming and guiding them through the days and seasons. Homo sapiens spent the bulk of our prehistory and history outside, mostly naked. Skin was the primary interface between our ancestors’ bodies and the world.
Rare bonobo behavior is photographic gold
Is this bonobo cuddling a pet, or did this mongoose become a meal? Wildlife photographer Christian Zeigler captured this moment during his time in the field with researchers at the LuiKotale Bonobo Project, a Leakey Foundation-supported field site in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The photograph was shortlisted for the British Natural History Museum’s prestigious Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition.
Why it’s crucial to safeguard the ancient practice of finding wild honey with birds
In parts of Africa, a small bird called the Greater Honeyguide helps people search for honey. It approaches and chatters and flies in the direction of a wild bees’ nest, urging the person to follow. This relationship may date back to up to 1.5 million years ago when hominins are thought to have gained control of fire.