Young chacma baboon in Moremi Game Reserve, Okavango Delta, Botswana

Young chacma baboon in Moremi Game Reserve, Okavango Delta, Botswana

This adolescent chacma baboon will grow big enough to be considered a member of one of the largest monkey species on Earth. Like many other primates, the chacma baboon is a highly social animal. One unusual social trait scientists have observed in the species is adoption behavior. If a baby’s mother dies, and her young baboon is unable to care for itself, a male-female couple are likely to adopt the orphan, providing care for the baby until it’s old enough to feed itself.