For the first time in history, scientists observed a free-living orangutan treating a wound with its own herbal paste.
The orangutan, living in Indonesia's Gunung Leuser National Park, was treated with a plant used by humans as an anti-inflammatory drug, the BBC reported on Thursday.
This is the first time an animal has been observed healing an injury with a plant. Scientists say such behavior may come from a common ancestor of humans and great apes, the portal emphasised.
Researchers spotted the injured animal in June 2022. They suspected the orangutan had been mauled in a fight with rival males. Scientists saw the monkey chew the stem and leaves of Akar Kuning (Fibraurea tinctoria), then apply the juice several times to the wound, and then apply a thicker paste of the leaves to the wound.
"The whole process took a really long time - so we think he put it on on purpose," said Dr Isabella Laumer, the study's lead author.
The paste and juice seemed to work effectively - after five days, the wound was healed and scientists noted no signs of infection, the website noted.
The researchers concluded that the injured orangutan used the medicine consciously: its relatives rarely feed on this particular plant.
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Scientists had previously been aware that great apes used medicinal plants - in the 1960s, biologist, Jane Goodall, saw whole leaves in chimpanzee feces, and other researchers noticed that great apes ingested the leaves of plants known to have medicinal properties . However, no one has ever observed a wild animal using plants to heal wounds.
According to Dr Laumer, it is possible that the orangutan used the medicinal compresses by accident. "It is possible that he accidentally touched the wound with his finger that had the plant on it. And because it contains quite strong pain-relieving substances, he may have felt immediate relief, which prompted him to constantly use the plant," she said. But he could also have learned this method by observing other orangutans in his herd.
Scientists will now look at orangutans for similar behavior. "I think that in the next few years we will discover even more skills that are very similar to humans," says Laumer.
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This article was originally published on Onet Travel.