A study published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B, found that while the baboons noticed and responded to a laser mark shining on their arms, legs and hands, they did not react when they saw, via their mirror reflection, the laser on their faces and ears.

It was the first time a controlled laser mark test has been done on these animals in a wild setting and strengthens the evidence from other studies that monkeys don’t recognize their own reflection.

The researchers observed 120 Chacma baboons in Tsaobis Nature Park, Namibia, between May and October 2021 to better understand self-awareness among wild non-hominid primates, who have previously been tested almost exclusively in captivity.