St Andrews University primatologists have found apes have an ability previously thought to be unique to humanity.

Working with colleagues in the world's largest ape research centre in the US, scientists presented the animals with different scenarios to test their behaviour.

The chimps were tasked with sucking juice from a large container just outside of their enclosure.

A range of different objects were available, from sticks to dip in the juice to various tubes that could be used as straws.

The most complicated tool was one that needed to be unfolded, with a valve that needed to be unscrewed to create a long straw to reach the juice from the deep container.

It was found that although they could not reach the correct conclusion on their own, the chimps followed the example led by one who had already been specially trained.

Professor Andrew Whiten, of St Andrews University, who led the study, said: "Perhaps the most fundamental thing this study shows is that a group of chimpanzees can appear more intelligent than any single individual - together they can create more advanced steps in cultural evolution.

Lead author Dr Gillian Vale, of Texas University, said: "Our chimpanzees were capable of learning increasingly complex behaviours by observing knowledgeable individuals.

"This and other recent studies are beginning to show that some non-human animals are better equipped to improve the complexity of their cultural behaviours over time than was previously believed".