A group of living things
Great apes
Hominidae
Our own family with no tails
Its members' last common ancestor lived about 16 million years ago.
You are part of this group. See how.
You are a great ape. The living members of this family are orangutans, gorillas, chimpanzees, bonobos and humans. That can feel surprising, but human bodies are very like the bodies of the other apes. Gibbons do not belong here. They are called lesser apes.
Great apes have no tail, unlike most monkeys. They have grasping hands with flat nails instead of claws, and thumbs that can meet the other fingers to grip. Their forward-facing eyes give depth vision, and their arms can swing freely at the shoulder. The family ranges from small chimpanzees and bonobos to huge gorillas. A big male gorilla can stand about as tall as a grown-up and weigh about as much as two or three grown-ups together.
Wild great apes, apart from humans, live mostly in the forests of equatorial Africa and Southeast Asia. Orangutans spend most of their lives up in trees in Borneo and Sumatra. Gorillas live mostly on the ground in troops led by a silverback male. Chimpanzees and bonobos both climb and travel on the ground.
Termite fishers
Chimpanzees strip twigs to fish for termites, and chew leaves into sponges to soak up water.
Nose prints
Each gorilla has distinctive fingerprints and a nose print unlike any other gorilla.
Peaceful leaders
Bonobo groups are largely peaceful and led by females. They do not seem to have fixed territories and usually ease tension without fighting.