As humans, we need to sleep. It’s an inevitable fact of life, and one that we’re accustomed to.
But that wasn’t always the case. A recently published study on red-footed tree-dwelling monkeys showed that the species does not require sleep.
In other words, these monkeys live their lives in constant alertness, without the need to rest. It’s a fascinating find and one that could lead to all sorts of interesting discoveries as humans try to figure out how to mimic this trait without completely losing it.
The Macaque monkey, better known as the “Japanese snow macaque” is a primate that lives on the northern island of Japan.
Unlike many of its cousins, the Japanese snow macaque is a deep-sleeping monkey.
It only wakes up once every few days, at most once a week, to look for food and water.
For the most part, these monkeys are so deep-sleeping that they do not even wake up when humans or other animals approach them.
