Which animals have opposable thumbs

Our thumbs are amazing adaptations, making us and the other animals with thumbs very special! Test life without thumbs!

Take the All Thumbs Challenge, see the rules at:. Your email address will not be published. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed. Skip to content. It was not our bipedal form of locomotion that allowed us to stand and look to the horizon that allowed us to move outwards.

It was not our ability to communicate with each other that allowed others to follow. Perhaps it has been our ability to imagine and to believe in something our mind cannot not confirm that has allowed us to move beyond our limitations. Climate change is accelerating. Its impacts are going to be more severe than earlier models predicted. We have less time to respond than we previously thought. Maybe so. But maybe we should still try.

I found the following article very informative and inspiring. What would genuine, no-bullshit ambition on climate change look like? The chances of us getting our collective shit together and accomplishing what these scenarios describe are … slim. There are so many vested interests and so much public aversion to rapid change, so many governments to be coordinated, so many economic and technology trends that must fall just the right way.

Conversely, the chances of us overdoing it — trying too hard, spending too much money, reducing emissions too much or too fast — are effectively nil. So the only rule of climate policy that really matters is: go as hard and fast as possible, forever and ever, amen.

What would happen if we refuse to stop trying? What if we refuse to admit failure and in the absence of certainty, we stubbornly refuse to quit? What if our actions now at this moment in time are truly what separates humans from all other species of life on earth? Can we can tame our fossil fueled addiction to consumption? Can we heal our over-polluted world? Can we use our opposable thumbs, our love of tools, our hyper-ability to communicate, and our unending need to conquer new challenges to reverse climate destabilization?

Menu Resilience Building a world of resilient communities. Get Resilience delivered daily. Baboons are omnivorous and highly social, living in packs of up to Koalas have 2 opposable thumbs on each front paw, and 1 opposable toe on each foot for a total of 6 opposable digits.

They live in tall eucalyptus forests and the extra two opposable thumbs help them keep their grip on branches. Koalas spend most of their lives in the trees and most of the time only come down to the ground if looking for a new tree that provides a better food source.

Where koalas can be found: Koalas are only found in eastern Australia, and a few islands off of the southern and eastern coasts. Although they are not listed as endangered by Australia, their population has been devastated over the last century and there are estimated to be less than , koalas left in the wild. Both the Red Panda and the Great Panda have an opposable sixth front toe.

This is a physical adaptation that allows them to grasp and eat bamboo shoots and leaves easily which is their primary diet. Where pandas can be found: Giant Pandas are only found in remote areas of central China, as of there were left in the wild which is up from in the s.

There are also a few hundred more in captivity at zoos. There are an estimated 10, living in the wild. Although many people are actually referring to the Virginia Opossum below when they say possum, this is an actual Brushtail Possum and they are native to Australia, but are also widespread in New Zealand. They feed mainly on leaves and insects and are considered to be pests by some. Where possums can be found: Probably the most widespread marsupial in all of Australia, Brushtail Possums can be found in western and northern Australia, but are mostly concentrated to the east and southeast.

Opossums, not to be confused with possums, are the only marsupials in North America. Their fifth toe on their hind leg is opposable and lacks a nail. They also have prehensile tales that they can use to hang upside down for short periods. Where opossums can be found: The Virginia opossum, aka common opossum, is the only species of opossum found in the United States and most commonly associated with backyard wildlife within its range.