Of course, we now know that humans (re: the Engels` piece) are apes – a twig on the family that includes the other Great Apes. Apes are not our ancestors, although many of our ancestors would have been apes, as we are too.Modern apes of the nonhuman variety are just as current as we are, as are all animals today – not steps leading to us. They are our modern-day, contemporary, cousins. See Dawkins` The Ancestor`s Tale and his contribution to the Great Ape Project.