Australian researchers have discovered that kangaroos are in fact left-handed despite previous assumptions that "handedness" was a uniquely "human" characteristic.
The research team from the University of Tasmania (UTAS) discovered that kangaroos and other marsupials favor one forelimb more than the other but, unlike humans who generally favor the right hand, kangaroos prefer the left.
PhD student Janeane Ingram said she observed kangaroos over a period of two years and found that the vast majority of the animals favored their left forelimb.
"The eastern grey and red kangaroos showed a strong preference for left forelimb use for all the observed types of behavior," she said on Friday.
"Red-necked wallabies showed a population-level preference for left forelimb use for feeding from a bipedal position and self- grooming."
Ingram's research revealed that forelimb preference was more prevalent in animals that were bipedal, or stand upright, compared to quadrupedal species. She said there was a distinct and strengthened link between posture and handedness.
"Any study that proves true handedness in another bipedal species contributes to the study of brain asymmetry and mammalian evolution," she said.
Ingram hinted that her team's research has paved the way for further studies to identify handedness in other animals.
"Even in the scientific community true handedness was assumed to have evolved primarily in humans and primates, but as one of our reviewers pointed out, laterality is also obvious in how parrots hold their food or how your dog shakes hands. But these examples of lateralization have not been proven at the population level," she added.
Xinhua News
Fri Jun 19 2015
Australian researchers have discovered that kangaroos are in fact left-handed.
Mesir, rakan usaha dapatkan gencatan senjata di Gaza
Mesir sedang berusaha mendapatkan satu gencatan senjata di Semenanjung Gaza dengan sokongan Amerika Syarikat (AS) dan Qatar, kata Menteri Luar Mesir, Sameh Shoukry pada Jumaat.
MediaTek lancar cip Dimensity 6300 dengan teknologi 6nm
Ia dihasilkan dengan teknologi 6nm TSMC dengan konfigurasi dua teras Cortex-A76 sehingga 2.4GHz dan enam teras Cortex A55 sehingga 2.0GHz.
Filem Sheriff pamer sisi berbeza Kamal Affandi sebagai pegawai polis
Filem Sheriff menemui penonton di pawagam mulai 18 April.
Bursa Malaysia dijangka mengalami keadaan tidak banyak berubah minggu depan
FBM KLCI dijangka turun naik dalam julat 1,528 hingga 1,560 minggu depan, dengan sokongan serta-merta pada 1,520, diikuti oleh 1,508.
Noktah kemiskinan tegar, isu kewarganegaraan dibincang bersama MPN PKR Sabah
Anwar yang juga Presiden PKR berkata MPN PKR Sabah telah mengutarakan kepentingan memesatkan usaha menoktahkan kemiskinan tegar di Sabah.
Tun Hanif Omar lakar sejarah Ketua Polis Negara paling lama, termuda
Allahyarham dilantik memegang jawatan Ketua Polis Negara keempat pada usia 35 tahun bermula 8 Jun 1974.
AWANI Ringkas: PM di Sabah, lawatan kerja sehari
Ikuti rangkuman berita utama yang menjadi tumpuan sepanjang hari di Astro AWANI menerusi AWANI Ringkas.
Amelia Henderson jawab tuduhan pakai rantai dengan loket salib
Aktres i.D berikut menerima kecaman kerana memakai loket balerina yang disalah erti oleh warga maya dengan lambang salib.
Mengenang Tun Mohammed Hanif Omar 1939-2024
Baik bagi mengenang pemergian tokoh negara berjiwa besar Allahyarham Tun Haniff Omar
Bersama kami di talian adalah Tan Sri Mohd Annuar Zaini yang juga merupakan tokoh pentadbiran yang kita kenali
Bersama kami di talian adalah Tan Sri Mohd Annuar Zaini yang juga merupakan tokoh pentadbiran yang kita kenali
Perluasan konflik serantau, Asia Barat
Prof Dr Azmi Hassan, Felo Kanan Akademi Penyelidikan Strategik Nusantara NASR