Why are we near hairless?

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Well, what is the advantage that

hairless-cat.jpg


and

main.php


have?

For some reason, some hairless versions of some species that are otherwise covered with fur are valued above the furred. Why?

You have to keep in mind though that the hairless cat and dog breeds always (as far as I know) have problems with their dentition. That's because the thing they are always breeding out seems to play a role in hair and tooth development. So my guess would be that hairless dogs and such are definitely not correlated to our situation since we don't share the same dental problems.
 
I mean the mammals out on the veldt are all hairy. Our fellow primates are all hairy. Why not us? What advantage did this give us? Or was the mutation merely neutral?


Face recognition. Easier to spot friend of foe on a hairless face?
 
Apes have hair to protect them from scrapes from sharp branches while swinging through the trees and running through bushes.

On the plains and out of the shady and sharp jungle, the hair has less utility.
 
I mean the mammals out on the veldt are all hairy. Our fellow primates are all hairy. Why not us? What advantage did this give us? Or was the mutation merely neutral?

But that's presuming that the theory of evolution is correct.

:eek:
 
If you don't really need hair for warmth, there is a clear advantage to not having any. It gives parasites fewer places to hide.
 
if a body part of an animal is no longer needed for survival, it will get smaller and smaller over time and eventually disappear. that's why we no longer have tails even though our ancestors did. same reason why our canines have now become too small and dull to effectively butcher an animal in the wild.

it's not because being hairless is more desirable, it's because unneccessary body parts will disappear over time because they are no longer a requirement for survival.
 
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if a body part of an animal is no longer needed for survival, it will get smaller and smaller over time and eventually disappear. that's why we no longer have tails even though our ancestors did. same reason why our canines have now become too small and dull to effectively butcher an animal in the wild.

it's not because being hairless is more desirable, it's because unneccessary body parts will disappear over time because they are no longer a requirement for survival.

We've had hats for a long time...why do we have head hair?
Why do we have an appendix?

Why did all races lose so much hair? Is there a correlation between climate and hair levels?
 
im just going to have a guess here: maybe because the first humans evolved in a very warm climate, breeding out most of the hair, and when they migrated to colder parts of the world they already had the intelligence to fashion clothing for warmth and the lack of hair didnt affect their survival.
 
im just going to have a guess here: maybe because the first humans evolved in a very warm climate, breeding out most of the hair, and when they migrated to colder parts of the world they already had the intelligence to fashion clothing for warmth and the lack of hair didnt affect their survival.
but the apes and monkeys have hair in the hot climates.
 
Apes have hair to protect them from scrapes from sharp branches while swinging through the trees and running through bushes.
Apes must have a special kind of fur to keep them from having a heat stroke in the jungle climates they often live in.

On the plains and out of the shady and sharp jungle, the hair has less utility.
Yet all of the plains animals have fur too; albeit shorter fur.
 
I think it was sexual selection, though a parasite hypothesis is at least mildly convincing. Living in large social groups, not having flea ridden fur would probably be advantageous.
 
I think it was sexual selection, though a parasite hypothesis is at least mildly convincing. Living in large social groups, not having flea ridden fur would probably be advantageous.
Wolves, chimps, elk, lions......
 
Wolves, chimps, elk, lions......

'Early humans, with their great intelligence, were more disturbed by having fleas than wolves, chimps, elk, lions etc. were. So early humans 1. selected to mate with the less haired fellows; and / or 2. washed and cleaned themselves.

Regularly washed animals (such as domestic cats and dogs) can get problems with their fur - which would suggest that hygiene can be a factor in losing fur or diminishing its quality.'

Or perhaps:

'Early humans were nervous a lot (since they had all that great intelligence, so they realized that there are many things to be afraid of, and that really really scared them). Persistent nervousness can cause loss of scalp and body hair.'
 
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Apes must have a special kind of fur to keep them from having a heat stroke in the jungle climates they often live in.


Yet all of the plains animals have fur too; albeit shorter fur.

Do not play switch-em with animals while arguing.

Take a lion's neck hair for instance. It is to protect it from other lions biting at its neck. It's very specialized to the lion, not the wildebeest. Same hair, different purpose, because they are different animals.

So wildebeest have fur for different reasons than we have hair. Just because all the plain animals have fur too, is not a very good reasons that humans should as well. In fact we don't, so why assert the contrary?

Forgive me if I'm off, I typed quickly and have to run
 
Well, what is the advantage that

hairless-cat.jpg


and

main.php


have?

For some reason, some hairless versions of some species that are otherwise covered with fur are valued above the furred. Why?

The hairless breeds were created by man.

Man...

That has nothing do with the evolutionary nature being discussed here.

Hairless breeds are prized because they are rare, created breeds.
 
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