Why do we still have apes (if people evolved from apes)?

Answer 1

Contrary to the voices of many MISINFORMED people, Darwin nor any other evolutionist has ever said we evolved from apes. The truth of the matter is humans and apes evolved from a COMMON ANCESTOR. That is why both humans and apes still exist. The common ancestor is extinct.

Answer 2

We _are_ apes. Apes are primates without tails, and we qualify on both counts (well, most of us, but that's a rare genetic oops that doesn't disqualify you).

But you want to know why there are still gorillas, chimps, and orangutans. It seems like this question has been answered before here, but anyway. That's because, as the poster above said, we didn't evolve from gorillas, chimps, or orangutans. We evolved from a common ancestor that we share with them. They're our cousins, not our grandparents. Our population split off from the population that eventually became chimps (our closest living relatives) about 1.5 or 2.5 million years ago. Our lot went through some changes, came out of the forests, and eventually became humans. Their lot did some stuff I don't know a lot about because I don't really know much about chimpanzee evolution, but they never left the trees.

That's the important bit; that's why they're still around and our closer relatives aren't. We outcompeted the Neanderthals and homo floriensis (probably), just as they outcompeted the guys who came before them. We were in the same environment, living in a very, very similar way, and there just wasn't room for both of us. Homo sapiens just turned out to be better at being in that niche than Neanderthals, so we we're here and they're not. Chimps, gorillas, and the rest live in a different environment, they eat different foods, and live in a different way. We don't hunt each other all that much (although that is a serious problem in famine-stricken areas and a major contributor to the problems that chimps are having nowadays), and we probably didn't have too much interaction, at least in the beginning.

Answer 3

That's like saying, "why do we have tigers?" Everything on Earth evolved from a one-celled creature. Mutation caused the variety of living plants and animals we now have. It's possible that apes will eventually go extinct, because like the Neanderthals, they can't adapt to changing conditions. Humans are adaptable, but destructive. We, too, will eventually go extinct unless we change our ways, but it will probably be because of our own actions, rather than because of our inability to adapt.

Answer 4

That's not exactly right. Millions of years ago, humans and apes had a common ancestor. We went off on different evolutionary lines. That common ancestor doesn't exist anymore. You could take your line of thinking to its ultimate conclusion by saying that if evolution is correct, then why do we have ANY species other than modern humans?

Answer 5

the gal above hit this dead on..
we have a link with apes, but we are not directly FROM apes.

IE. a genetic mutation, or some freak of nature,
that over time brought humans to where we are...
you have to realize we are taking millions of years of evolution,
its not like an ape gave birth to a human.

Answer 6

This question, if serious, deserves no response.

It is much like the question: If trigger could do all those tricks on the TV why did the producers of the Roy Rogers Show need five different triggers, all painted to look like one single horse.

When you have a tautology in your first question...all else that follows is BS!

Jim D

Answer 7

We are apes, we just think too highly of ourselves to let go and call each other ape.

Answer 8

good question. Why do you believe what orthodox biology teaches school students? History is like chinese whispers and the science of evolution is assumption