Sea otters are the new members of the animal kingdom’s tool-wielding club. A recent study offers a fuller understanding of the tool use – utilizing rocks and other objects to break open hard prey – by Sea otters.
- It lets the otters eat certain larger prey and reduces their tooth damage by cutting down on their chomping down on hard shells, with females using tools more than males, perhaps to compensate for their smaller body size and weaker bite force, researchers found.
Tool-wielding club
- Chimpanzees crack nuts with stones and use sticks to get at tasty termites.
- Dolphins are known to employ sponges to protect their beaks while foraging.
- A Galapagos Islands finch uses cactus spines to dig grubs out of holes.
