Rudapithecus

The **European simia** (*Rudapithecus germanica*) is a species of chimpanzee-like ape of the tribe Dryopithecini that originally lived in Europe during the Late Miocene, approximately 10 million years ago, as an extinct species, *Rudapithecus hungaricus*, and the genus itself was once extinct, but has since been brought back from extinction by SciiFii and introduced throughout the modern wetlands, forests, and open woodlands across Europe to help boost biodiversity. The European simia is much smaller in average than many great apes, about the size of a medium-sized dog. The European simia moves among branches like other apes do, holding its body upright, and climbing trees with its arms. The European simia differs from other great apes by having a more flexible lumbar, which shows that when the European simia comes down to the ground, it has the ability to stand upright like humans do. *Gorilla*, *Pan*, and *Pongo* apes have a long pelvis, and a short lumbar because they are very large animals, which is why they usually walk on all fours. More specialized apes such as humans have a longer, more flexible lumbar, which allow humans to stand upright, and walk efficiently on two legs. It is known that Rudapithecus had a more flexible torso than many other non-human apes. The European simia is an omnivorous frugivore; 57% of its diet is fruit, but this is supplemented with leaves, honey, eggs, meat from small vertebrates such as tree squirrels, flying squirrels and duikers, and invertebrates. In some instances, European simias have been shown to consume lower-order primates. European simias are unusual among non-human apes for their matriarchal social structure (with there being an extensive overlap between the male and female hierarchies, leading some to refer to them as gender-balanced in their power structure). European simias do not have a defined territory and communities will travel over a wide range. Due to the nomadic nature of the females and evenly distributed food in their environment, males do not gain any obvious advantages by forming alliances with other males, or by defending a home range, as European chimpanzees (*Dryopithecus europeansis*) do. Female European simias possess sharper canines than female European chimpanzees, further fueling their status in the group. Although a male European simia is usually dominant to a female in a dyadic interaction, depending on the community, socially-bonded females may be co-dominant with males or dominant over them (even to the extent that females can coerce reluctant males into mating with them). Certain males alert the group to any possible threats, protecting the group from predators such as pythons and leopards. Males engage in lengthy friendships with females and, in turn, female European simias prefer to associate with and mate with males who are respectful and easygoing around them. Because female European simias can use alliances to rebuff coercive and domineering males and select males at their own leisure, they show preference for males who are not aggressive towards them. Aging European simias lose their playful streak and become noticeably more irritable in old age. Both sexes have a similar level of aggressiveness. European simias live in a male philopatric society where the females immigrate to new communities while males remain in their natal troop. However, it is not entirely unheard of for males to occasionally transfer into new groups. Additionally, females with powerful mothers may remain in their natal clan. European simias are not known to kill each other, and are generally less violent than European chimpanzees, yet aggression still manifests itself in this species. European simia reproductive rates are no higher than those of the European chimpanzee. However, female European simia oestrus periods are longer. During oestrus, females undergo a swelling of the perineal tissue lasting 10 to 20 days. The gestation period is on average 240 days. Postpartum amenorrhea (absence of menstruation) lasts less than one year and a female may resume external signs of oestrus within a year of giving birth, though the female is probably not fertile at this point. Female bonobos carry and nurse their young for four years and give birth on average every 4.6 years. Compared to European chimpanzees, European simia females resume the perineal tissue swelling cycle much sooner after giving birth, enabling them to rejoin the sexual activities of their society. Also, European simia females which are sterile or too young to reproduce still engage in sexual activity. Mothers will help their sons get more matings from females in oestrus. Adult male European simias have sex with infants, although without penetration. Infanticide, while well documented in European chimpanzees, is apparently absent in European simia society. The highly sexual nature of European simia society and the fact that there is little competition over mates means that many males and females are mating with each other, in contrast to the one dominant male European chimpanzee that fathers most of the offspring in a group. The strategy of European simia females mating with many males may be a counterstrategy to infanticide because it confuses paternity. If male European simias cannot distinguish their own offspring from others, the incentive for infanticide essentially disappears. This is a reproductive strategy that seems specific to European simias; infanticide is observed in all other great apes except orangutans. The conservation status of the European simia is **Least Concern** due to successful conservation efforts and the European simia's wide range.