Throughout history, there have always been those who dared to dream of creating a human-chimp hybrid, affectionately known as the “humanzee”. These individuals may be considered a bit eccentric, but their attempts have certainly captured our attention.
One such attempt was made by Russian biologist lya Ivanovich, who unfortunately took the worst approach possible. Due to a combination of moral repulsion and a lack of ape semen, his experiment ended in failure. However, over the years, there have been reports, albeit dubious ones, of “chuman” embryos being created or even brought to term.
Perhaps the most intriguing story of all is the rumored birth of a human-chimp hybrid in the US, which ultimately led to its euthanization when the scientists involved realized the full implications of their actions.
In 2018, evolutionary psychologist Gordon Gallup made astonishing claims to British tabloid newspaper The Sun. According to Gallup, a hybrid was born at a primate research center in Orange Park, Florida, during the 1920s. He stated, “They inseminated a female chimpanzee with human semen from an undisclosed donor and claimed not only that pregnancy occurred but the pregnancy went full term and resulted in a live birth.”
However, as the scientists contemplated the moral and ethical implications of their creation, the infant was ultimately euthanized. Gallup, a respected psychologist known for his work on the mirror test, claimed to have heard this story from a credible scientist.
Oliver, a chimpanzee people believed to be a hybrid until DNA testing proved otherwise.
Extraordinary claims demand extraordinary evidence. Merely stating that “someone else told me it was true” without revealing their identity or involvement in the experiment does not provide the necessary proof.
Furthermore, it remains uncertain whether a hybrid between a human and a chimpanzee is even biologically possible. While some suggest that our ancestors and chimpanzees could interbreed as recently as 4 million years ago (our last common ancestor lived 6-7 million years ago), this theory is contested. The apparent short divergence time in the X chromosome between chimps and humans, which led to suspicions of hybridization, could be explained by natural selection.
Although other animals with genetic similarities to humans and chimps, such as horses and zebras, have successfully reproduced, their offspring often prove to be infertile.
Even if we were genetically compatible enough to create an embryo, it is highly unlikely that it would develop into a full-term pregnancy. Ultimately, the question remains: why would we even want to attempt such a feat?
