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LiveScience
LiveScience
Kristina Killgrove

Humans' big brains may not be the reason for difficult childbirth, chimp study suggests

Portrait of a cute baby chimpanzee and her mother showing affection for each other.

Difficult births are not unique to humans, a new analysis of chimpanzee pelvic bones has revealed.

The findings suggest that complicated births may not have arisen in humans as a trade-off between our need for big brains and pelvises suitable for upright walking — a notion termed "the obstetrical dilemma."

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