In general, primates have a closer infant/mother bond and a longer childhood than other animals. During the time a primate is an infant and child it is learning from its mother how to survive in the environment. Primates learn what to eat, where to find food, how to eat different foods, mating rituals, social structure, and females learn maternal behavior.
While still in utero, the brain is growing.
Thus the longer the gestation period, the larger the relative size of the
brain will be in the infant. It is assumed that the more time spent in infancy
and childhood, the more an animal learns. There is a direct correlation
to length of the gestation period, infancy and childhood development, and
lifespan in primates.
What primate do you think has the longest gestation period, infancy, and
childhood?
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