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Updated: May 5, 2026

Assessing Species-specific Contributions To Craniofacial Development Using Quail-duck Chimeras
Published on: May 31, 2014
Primate feedstock for the evolution of consonants
Adriano R Lameira1, Ian Maddieson2, Klaus Zuberbühler3
1Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics, University of Amsterdam, Sciencepark 904, 1098 XH Amsterdam, The Netherlands; Pongo Foundation, Papenhoeflaan 91, 3421 XN Oudewater, The Netherlands.
Abstract:
The evolution of speech remains an elusive scientific problem. A widespread notion is that vocal learning, underlined by vocal-fold control, is a key prerequisite for speech evolution. Although present in birds and non-primate mammals, vocal learning is ostensibly absent in non-human primates. Here we argue that the main road to speech evolution has been through controlling the supralaryngeal vocal tract, for which we find evidence for evolutionary continuity within the great apes.
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