Orangutans use slang like schoolchildren

And other stories from the stranger side of life

An orangutan

Small gangs of apes use slang terms, a new study has found. Dozens of orangutans in Borneo and Sumatra were studied by researchers from the University of Warwick. Scientists identified original calls in “high density” groups, The Telegraph reported, with individuals using novel sounds that are rapidly picked up. However, these calls are just as quickly discarded. The researchers compared the phenomena to school children “going through fads” where certain phrases “suddenly become popular before just as quickly becoming grossly uncool”, said the paper.

Teeth left behind at restaurant

A restaurant in Oldham is trying to find the owner of an unorthodox piece of lost and found property: a full set of teeth. The Barclay Pizza & Prosecco said cleaners found a full set of dentures on the floor in the bar area of the establishment. “We get a lot of things left behind after a night in the Barclay, we’ve had house keys, phones, even a single shoe (she must have hopped home) but this is a new one,” wrote the owner on Facebook.

Dog dumped for ‘being gay’

A dog has been dumped at a shelter in the US for being “gay.” The Stanly County Animal Shelter said the dog’s owners surrendered him to the shelter after he humped another male dog, reported WCCB Charlotte. Fezco, the shelter said, is about four to five years old and weighs about 50 pounds. About 3.1 million dogs enter animal shelters in the US each year, according to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

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