A Spear-fishing Orangutan.
Primatology.net, a new favorite site of mine, has this fantastic article on this Orangutan from Borneo. This Orangutan is special because he’s using a tool. Not just any tool though. We’ve seen primates use tools before. But this Orangutan is SPEAR-FISHING.
Gurd Schuster is the researcher that took this photo. He did mention that while this orangutan learnt this method from watching fishermen along the river, he hasn’t fully mastered the skill yet.
“Although the method required too much skill for him to master, he was later able to improvise by using the pole to catch fish already trapped in the locals’ fishing lines”
I, for one, welcome our Spear-Fishing Orangutan Overlords.