Animal Fingerprints

Humans are not the only ones with fingerprints! Some primates, including gorillas and chimpanzees, and koala bears have their own unique prints.

Gorillas have hands that are quite similar to human hands. They have five fingers (including an opposable thumb), and five toes (including an opposable big toe). Gorillas can grasp things with both their hands and their feet. They are capable of grasping these objects because they have ridges on their feet and hands that help them grip things. These ridges are formed in unique patterns and cause gorillas to have fingerprints of their own.

The Koala has fingerprints that are so similar to the human fingerprint that it is almost impossible to tell them apart because of the pattern, shape and size of the ridges. Under the microscope, the ridges look exactly the same. The width of the ridge, the shape, general size and pattern is the same. The main difference is that the entire human palm and fingers are covered with ridges while the koala only has ridges on its fingertips and some parts of the palm.

Which print belongs to a… human? chimpanzee? koala bear?

2 3

1-Koala Bear 2-Human 3-Chimpanzee

Fingerprint Basics
Types of Fingerprints
Fingerprint Patterns
Ridge Characteristics
Developing Powders
Developing Reagents
Developing Reagent Details
Lifting Techniques
Fingerprint Identification
Unusual Fingerprints
History of Fingerprinting
Body Prints
DNA Fingerprinting
Trace Evidence
Forensic Science
Jobs Involving Fingerprinting