‘Cursed’ Primate Weirdos Have Extra Thumbs. Scientists Didn’t Know About Them Until Now.

By Mindy Weisberger There’s a little extra thumb-thing on the hand of the aye-aye, a strange-looking nocturnal lemur native to Madagascar. Tucked near each wrist is a small nub of bone and cartilage that’s like a miniature thumb — and until recently, scientists didn’t know this pseudothumb existed. Aye-ayes (Daubentonia madagascariensis) are considered by many to be the …