Japanese Snow Macaques

Primates are interesting animals. The actual anthropological definition of a primate is any animal past or present with a boney structured inner ear. There have been many primates on the planet which are now extinct that we find through the fossil record as the archaeologists exhume their bones, which tell stories of the past long before time was recorded. Todays story is about a modern primate which is still around and lives in the highest elevated region for any primate except humans. The Japanese snow Macaque who lives in the freezing highlands of the Asian mountains live a in a winter wonderland. Primates are social animals and try very hard to fit in and for rank - these are not soley human traits. All primates behave in this manner. The Japanese snowMacaque has

a ranking system. The highest ranking, dominate individuals run the show and call the shots. If you are fortunate to be an offspring of a high ranking individual you are very lucky. Amongst the frigid temperatures and snow c

overed hills are hidden volcanic springs. These springs are as nice to them as they would be for us. Imagine your self alone, stranded in the wild, cold country and running into a hot spring. You would be in pure bliss. Magical. This is exactly the situation with the Macaques, however, if your not kin - then your not in!

The Japanese snow Macaques have a ranking system. It is a geneological ranking system. The only members of their society who can even enter the hot springs are those who are in

the b

lood line. Those fortunate children who frolic in the warmth do not even care if the poor, lonely macaques are dying in the cold - and they do die! One might think how is this good for the species? However, they do not care about those other less fortunate low ranking individuals. Does this sound familiar?

I think, that next to the higher primates like the Orang a tan, the low land and mountain

gorilla and

the chimpanzee and the Bonobo chimpanzee, the Japanese snow macaque is the next in line for

social intelligence which is similar to modern day homo sapien - sapiens. However, as for all the primates even us - (we are a primate which is upright walking and this is known as bipedalism) Out of all the primates - even the bipedal hominids, the only two which are imperialistic in nature would be the Japanese snow macaques and the modern bipedal hominids - homo sapien - sapiens - us! This trait is not entirely human. Another primate alone on a cold mountain in Japan is not to far off from the imperialistic ideologies of civilization. I can't wait to bathe with them one day and observe the social structure! It is just one of the things I want to do before I die!