WATCH: Apes can swim and dive just like humans

Scientists attribute the similarities to our mutual tree-swinging past

Swimming chimp
(Image credit: YouTube)

Learning how to swim is a childhood rite of passage, whether you were part of a dreaded group class, or just thrown into the deep end by your well-meaning parents. But the seemingly absurd notion of dunking your head face down into the water while your arms swing overhead while you pace your breathing might actually be more instinctive than we think.

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Kimberly Alters

Kimberly Alters is the news editor at TheWeek.com. She is a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.