Gibbon-male, who wants to get a more attractive female, needs to sweat his vocal properly. For females – the better the singer, the healthier the genes and, consequently, the regular supply of fruit.
Every morning, the couple are met with an incredibly difficult duet. Like all great singers, they begin gibbons with “chanting.” Males come before dawn, sometimes while still in bed, which in the case of gibbons means sitting high on a tree, at a trunk or in a fork of branches, arms wrapped around the knees and lowering their head on them. Females are much more active and theatrical than males: their arias are called “a great song.” When the aria reaches its culmination, the female rushes between the trees, tearing off the leaves and twigs as they go.
Males that have a pair, especially when they start talking, start singling males around alone, which is understandable. Most family groups consist of a male, female and three to four young: some young gibbons do not leave the parent’s nest until they are ten years old. Due to the poor diet – fruits, leaves and occasional insects – half the life of the family dangle just like that or comb each other’s parasites. In some species, the male takes care of rearing the offspring when the young ones are separated from the mother, and teaches them “swing”.
Gibbons – born “flyers”. Their arms are longer than the legs and torso combined, and strong enough to push the gibbon away at a distance of 50 feet at a speed of 35 miles per hour. The bones on the wrists of the gibbon are separated by soft pads, which allows the animal to move in all directions. Due to the structure of the forelimbs, the gibbon can swing and change the trajectory without turning the trunk – this saves energy and gives the gibbons their famous maneuverability and agility.
