When Tourists Left, These Monkeys Got Creative
shift gears: to quickly change what one is doing or saying
Humans are master tool makers, but many primates use tools. Capuchin monkeys in Brazil have been using stone tools to open cashew nuts for around 700 years. We know this from studying their current behavior and the remains of tools from hundreds of years ago.
Dr Michael Haslam of the University of Oxford says that primates probably won’t continue evolving their use of tools because of us. By cutting down trees and building farms, we have disturbed their natural environment.But what would happen if we were to leave them alone?
When COVID-19 happened, a group of macaques in Koh Ped, Thailand, started doing something they had never done before. They started using stone tools to break open oysters for food. Before the pandemic, these monkeys got a lot of their food from tourists. But when the tourists stopped coming, the hungry monkeys had to shift gears. Now that humans have returned, scientists are curious to see if they will forget how to use their new tool.
Sample sentences
1. After realizing her initial plan wasn’t working, Maria decided to shift gears and try a different approach to solve the problem.
2. The company had to shift gears quickly to adapt to the changing market trends.
3. The politician shifted gears in his campaign, moving from domestic issues to foreign policy.
Read More:
Macaques In Thailand Started Using Stone Tools When COVID-19 Stopped Tourists Feeding Them”