Swimming is the ability to move through water's surface while partially or totally submerged in it. In a lax sense the ability to maintain oneself afloat may be included in the definition. Swimming is an activity that is both useful and recreational for many species. Its primary uses are bathing, cooling, travel, fishing and escape. An individual's ability to swim can be judged by speed or stamina. Animals with lungs have an easier time floating than those without. Almost all mammals can swim by instinct. Bats, kangaroos, moles and sloths can swim, despite their rather strange shapes. The few exceptions include apes and possibly giraffes. Land birds can swim or float for at least some time. Ostriches, cassowaries and tortoises can swim. Gorillas, chimpanzees, bonobos, orangutans, and at least some gibbon are among the few mammals which lack the instinctive ability to swim, although they can wade upright in water. There are reports that siamang can swim. There are numerous reports of apes in zoos falling and drowning in water moats without any struggle. Humans, similarly, do not swim instinctively. In contrast, many monkeys can naturally swim and some, like the proboscis [ - ]

Swimming is the ability to move through water's surface while partially or totally submerged in... [ + ]