The loneliest chimp (黑猩猩) in the world just got the best surprise — a hug from a new friend. Peter has been by himself for nearly three years, finding himself alone after his wife and children died on the island where they were abandoned by a medical testing company many years ago.

For years a nearby villager named Fred has been Peter’s only company, visiting him so often to bring bananas and bread — the chimp’s only source of food on the tiny island. It was clear how much Peter missed companionship when he was recently visited by Chimpanzee Conservation Centre Director Estelle Crusoe. The chimp immediately embraced Estelle Crusoe in a huge hug and laughed as she reached out for him, with his smile from ear to ear.

For those who know Peter’s back-story, his immediate ease and trust in humans might be surprising. Peter was one of 20 chimps, all between the ages of 7 to 11 years old, relocated to an island off the Ivory Coast after being used for testing by the New York Blood Centre. After the tests were completed in 2005, the lab reportedly transferred the chimps to a string of islands, occasionally dropping off food and water because there was none in the chimps’ new homes.

Disease and hunger soon left only Peter, his mate and their two children standing. But at the end of 2013 they died within days of each other and Peter was now completely alone.

A group called SOS PETER is trying to raise money for the poor lonely chimp, already achieving its goal of 20,000 — all of which will be used for Peter’s care.

The memory of elephants is the stuff of lore (传说), and now it seems they can recall the smell of a relative even after a decade apart.

When Franziska Hörner at the University of Wuppertal in Germany and her colleagues heard about planned reunions between two mother-daughter pairs at zoos in Germany, the took advantage of the chance to test the elephants’ memories. One pair had been separated for two years, while the other had spent 12 years apart.

Hörner collected faecal (排泄物的) samples from these African elephants and others at German zoos, hauling the stinking 10-to-15-kilogram samples around in her tiny car.

Her team presented these samples one at a time to the four elephants in advance of their reunions with family members. When they encountered faeces from unrelated elephants, cither those in the same zoo or unfamiliar animals, they sniffed and walked away.

But when presented with a sample from the mother or daughter they were due to be reunited with, the female elephants repeatedly sniffed the samples and showed a variety of reactions, from making sounds to flapping their ears.

Such reactions may be linked to positive emotions, the researchers say. “That was amazing and really intense,” says Hörner. “We were sure they do remember, and they know exactly what they are smelling there.”

The sample size was small, but it would be cruel to do similar tests on elephants that weren’t being reunited, says Hörner.

“I am not surprised that elephants have memories, especially in social contexts, that last a long time,” says Joshua Plotnik at Hunter College in New York, who wasn’t involved with the work. Elephants live in groups that split up and come back together over long periods of time.

But Plotnik says the experiment may not be a true test of memory. There may be scent cues (线索，提示) common to all relatives that can trigger recognition not linked to memory, he says, and presenting the elephants with other smells would help make sense of their responses.

An elephant and a crocodile were once standing beside river. They were disputing which was the better animal.

“Look at my strength,” said the elephant. “I can pull up a tree, roots and all, with my trunk.”

“Ah! But your skin is not nearly so thick as mine,” replied the crocodile. “No knife or tooth can cut through it.”

Just as they were coming to blows, a lion happened to pass.

“My dear friends !” said the King of all animals, going up to them. “Let me know the cause of your disagreement.”

“Will you kindly tell us which is the better animal?” cried both at once.

“Certainly,” said the lion, pointing across the river. “Do you see the soldier’s metal hat on that wall?”

“Yes!” replied the beasts.

“Well, then,” continued the lion, “go and get it, and bring it to me, and I shall be able then to decide between you.”

Upon hearing this, off they started, The crocodile, being used to the water, reached the opposite side of the river first, and was soon standing beside the wall.

Here he waited till the elephant came up. The elephant, seeing that the crocodile had no way of reaching their goal, raised his long trunk, and took down the hat quite easily.

They then made their way together back again across the river. The elephant was trying to keep up with the fast-moving crocodile in the water and became careless. When he was forced to turn sharply to avoid a floating tree branch, the elephant dropped the hat and it fell to the river bottom. The crocodile noticed the accident, so down he dived, and brought it up in his huge mouth. They then returned, and the crocodile laid the metal hat at the lion's feet. The King took it up, and turning to the elephant, said:“You, because of your size and trunk, were able to reach the hat on the wall but, having lost it, you were unable to get it back. And you,” said the lion to the crocodile, “although unable to reach the hat, were able to dive for it and save it. You are both wise and able in your own ways. One is no better than the other.”