'Ooh, he's lovely': monkey mums speak

September 7, 2007

A University of Chicago study has found similarities between human mothers and monkeys. The research found that female rhesus monkeys have their own version of baby talk when communicating with young monkeys. The high-pitched musical cries are used to get the attention of babies rather than to convey information. Moreover, the researchers discovered that the mother monkeys did not direct the calls towards their own children, suggesting that they only used the noises with other babies because they were excited about seeing a new infant.

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