THE NAKED APE

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displays would also differ, ensuring that they attract only mates of the new type. At last, a new species would have evolved, separate and discrete, a unique form of life, a three hundred and sixty-seventh kind of squirrel. When we look at our unidentified squirrel in its zoo cage, we can only guess about these things. All we can be certain about is that the markings of its fur-its black feet-indicate that it is a new form. But these are only the symptoms, the rash that gives a doctor a clue about his patient's disease. To really understand this new species, we must use these clues only as a starting point, telling us there is something worth pursuing. We might try to guess at the animal's history, but that would be presumptuous and dangerous. Instead we will start humbly by giving it a simple and obvious label: we will call it the African black footed squirrel. Now we must observe and record every aspect of its behaviour and structure and see how it differs from, or is similar to, other squirrels. Then, little by little, we can piece together its story. The great advantage we have when studying such animals is that we ourselves are not black-footed squirrels-afact which forces us into an attitude of humility that is becoming to proper scientific investigation. How different things are, how depressingly different, when we attempt to study the human animal. Even for the zoo.ogist, who is used to calling an animal an animal, it is difficult to avoid the arrogance of subjective invo., cement. We can try to overcome this to some extent by deliberately and rather coyly approaching the human being as if he were another species, a strange form of life on the dissecting table, awaiting analysis. How can we begin? As with the new squirrel, we can start by comparing him with other species that appear to be most closely related. From his teeth, his hands, his eyes and various other anatomical features, he is obviously a primate of some sort, but of a very odd kind. just how odd becomes clear when we lay out in a long row the skins of the one hundred and ninety-two living species of monkeys and apes, and then try to insert a human pelt at a suitable point somewhere in this long series. Wherever 14
we put it, it looks out of place. Eventually we are driven to position it right at one end of the row of skins, next to the hides of the tailless great apes such as the chimpanzee and the gorilla. Even here it it obtrusively different. The legs are too long, the arms are too short and the feet are rather strange. Clearly this species of primate has developed a special kind of locomotion which has modified its basic form. But there is another characteristic that cries out for attention: the skin is virtually naked. Except for conspicuous tufts of hair on the head, in the armpits and around the genitals, the skin surface is completely exposed. When compared with the other primate species, the contrast is dramatic. True, some species of monkeys and apes have small naked patches of skin on their rumps, their faces, or their chests, but nowhere amongst the other one hundred and ninety-two species is there anything even approaching the human condition. At this point and without further investigation, it is justifiable to name this new species the `naked ape'. It is a simple, descriptive name based on a simple observation, and it makes no special assumptions. Perhaps it will help us to keep a sense of proportion and maintain our objectivity. Staring at this strange specimen and puzzling over the significance of its unique features, the zoologist now has to start making comparisons. Where else is nudity at a premium? The other primates are no help, so it means looking farther afield. A rapid survey of the whole range of the living mammals soon proves that they are remarkably attached to their protective, furry covering, and that very few of the 4.,x3'7 species in existence have seen fit to abandon it. Unlike their reptilian ancestors, mammals have acquired the great physiological advantage of being able to maintain a constant, high body temperature. This keeps the delicate machinery of the body processes tuned in for top performance. It is not a property to be endangered or discarded lightly. The temperature-controlling devices are of vital importance and the possession of a thick, hairy, insulating coat obviously plays a major role in preventing heat loss. In intense sunlight it will also prevent over-heating and damage to the skin from 15
Page 1 and 2: THE NAKED APE by Desmond Morris A B
Page 3 and 4: ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This book is intend
Page 5 and 6: INTRODUCTION THERE are one hundred
Page 7 and 8: some respect. If they were healthy,
Page 9: CHAPTER ONE ORIGINS THERE is a labe
Page 13 and 14: The primate group, to which our nak
Page 15 and 16: Faced with a new environment, our a
Page 17 and 18: complex manoeuvres could be develop
Page 19 and 20: The brightest stars in the carnivor
Page 21 and 22: a pack of African hunting dogs it i
Page 23 and 24: the night, but the contrast is neve
Page 25 and 26: in the dirt of the den or lair. Aft
Page 27 and 28: was a process of differential infan
Page 29 and 30: eating it, each have their own part
Page 31 and 32: Male and female hunting apes had to
Page 33 and 34: feature was its naked skin, which l
Page 35 and 36: home bases, its dens became heavily
Page 37 and 38: vital missing links in our ancient
Page 39 and 40: first appears. A great deal will de
Page 41 and 42: CHAPTER TWO SEX SEXUALLY the naked
Page 43 and 44: phase, privacy is sought and the su
Page 45 and 46: summatory act of sperm ejaculation
Page 47 and 48: the arteries pumping blood into the
Page 49 and 50: activity. Once the climax has been
Page 51 and 52: old females will have experienced o
Page 53 and 54: stay put and mind the babies while
Page 55 and 56: -the female remains responsive to t
Page 57 and 58: mucous surfaces permanently exposed
Page 59 and 60: areas in other animals where there
Page 61 and 62:
Any body relationship, they feel, s
Page 63 and 64:
At some point, back in our ancestry
Page 65 and 66:
sexual contacts. In this particular
Page 67 and 68:
This may also explain why the male
Page 69 and 70:
lengths to render her as sexually r
Page 71 and 72:
ised his sex life. The contemporary
Page 73 and 74:
apology being proportional to the d
Page 75 and 76:
enlarges it, imitating in this way
Page 77 and 78:
ituation where the female is produc
Page 79 and 80:
and avoids being attacked. A subord
Page 81 and 82:
object lacking these signals. Secon
Page 83 and 84:
is that the prolonged period of inf
Page 85 and 86:
on the fundamental sexual structure
Page 87 and 88:
CHAPTER THREE REARING THE burden of
Page 89 and 90:
is not enough for the infant's lips
Page 91 and 92:
mother, either instinctively or by
Page 93 and 94:
apid during the first two years of
Page 95 and 96:
onwards. It may even clasp on to he
Page 97 and 98:
unlike the verbal signals, they eme
Page 99 and 100:
mother's face and to distinguish he
Page 101 and 102:
oth frighteningly odd and at the sa
Page 103 and 104:
friendly, but if we greet them by l
Page 105 and 106:
We develop the vital bond of attach
Page 107 and 108:
andom and unco-ordinated. The cryin
Page 109 and 110:
CHAPTER FOUR EXPLORATION ALL mammal
Page 111 and 112:
But the reverse is actually the cas
Page 113 and 114:
are combined, one with another, to
Page 115 and 116:
equired no reward-it was its own re
Page 117 and 118:
Writing, a formalised offshoot of p
Page 119 and 120:
and clothing, in furniture and cars
Page 121 and 122:
contacts immensely difficult and wi
Page 123 and 124:
epeatedly bite themselves, or pull
Page 125 and 126:
on the other hand, of vital signifi
Page 127 and 128:
in respiratory activity. Breathing
Page 129 and 130:
under the extreme conditions of agg
Page 131 and 132:
formalised into rhythmic twistings
Page 133 and 134:
sdditional energy on it, and it is
Page 135 and 136:
the grooming itself. Monkeys make g
Page 137 and 138:
signal. (With the arm bent and held
Page 139 and 140:
intensities of it are expressed in
Page 141 and 142:
mechanisms. Many moths have a pair
Page 143 and 144:
largely confined now to a form of s
Page 145 and 146:
such a situation can be seen to per
Page 147 and 148:
the policeman into a position of im
Page 149 and 150:
attacker and his enemy, and it is t
Page 151 and 152:
intelligence that must get us out.
Page 153 and 154:
frequent accompaniment of wailing o
Page 155 and 156:
of the `pomp and circumstance' will
Page 157 and 158:
in profusion. This is usually expla
Page 159 and 160:
personal acquaintances listed there
Page 161 and 162:
grounds. It is a predominantly masc
Page 163 and 164:
elements of challenge, luck and ris
Page 165 and 166:
Another interpretation is that we h
Page 167 and 168:
If they appeal to our old primate w
Page 169 and 170:
disposal, we might be expected to r
Page 171 and 172:
giving an impression of great conce
Page 173 and 174:
the female can then fondle it and c
Page 175 and 176:
is it aesthetically pleasing. Its f
Page 177 and 178:
significance of the hair. In its re
Page 179 and 180:
co-operativeness, specialised groom
Page 181 and 182:
it is a strong dose of security tha
Page 183 and 184:
If the environment becomes too cold
Page 185 and 186:
CHAPTER EIGHT ANIMALS UP to this po
Page 187 and 188:
prey-predator relationship, since i
Page 189 and 190:
substitute space-traveller. No othe
Page 191 and 192:
interferes with the efficient runni
Page 193 and 194:
point of view, are fully justified
Page 195 and 196:
small objects (chimpanzee, monkey,
Page 197 and 198:
The unexpected discovery here is th
Page 199 and 200:
on its back. It must be stressed he
Page 201 and 202:
This cannot be explained solely on
Page 203 and 204:
spiders being nasty, hairy things.
Page 205 and 206:
symbolically, scientifically or aes
Page 207 and 208:
tendencies; that if we have to beco
Page 209 and 210:
Heart-beat response: Salk, 1966. Gr
Page 211 and 212:
BIBLIOGRAPHY AMBROSE, J. A., `The s
Page 213 and 214:
MILES, W. R., 'Chimpanzee behaviour
Page 215:
Mimikry der Primaten'. Die Naturwis
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THE NAKED APE

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