An orangutan copying sounds made by researchers offers new clues to how human speech evolved, scientists say.
Rocky mimicked more than 500 vowel-like noises, suggesting an ability to control his voice and make new sounds.
It had been thought these great apes were unable to do this and, since human speech is a learned behaviour, it could not have originated from them.
Study lead Dr Adriano Lameira said this "notion" could now be thrown "into the trash can".
Dr Lameira, who conducted the research at Amsterdam University prior to joining Durham University, said Rocky's responses had been "extremely accurate".
The team wanted to make sure the ape produced a new call, rather than adapting a "normal orangutan call with a personal twist" or matching sounds randomly or by coincidence, he said.
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