[airspirit]

The reason that there are no semi-intelligent apes is that we as a species wiped them out. Many neanderthal bones show the wear of warfare. Yes, we weren't related to them ... that article said as much. We branched off of an earlier species, much like the lion and the tiger. We were more closely related, however. While lions and tigers can breed, the product is a sterile mule. It is speculated, however, that Cro Magnon man and Neanderthal man could breed (I didn't mean in the homo sort of way, I meant "man" as a species). It was probably a rare occurance, however.

We all know how xenophobic mankind is. We also know how territorial we are. The difference between a white man and a black man was seen as a different species practically until the recent century. How do you think our primitive ancestors would have seen the difference between themselves and some slope-headed, bow-legged, extremely muscular guys that didn't have the same cognitive and linguistic abilities as themselves? They probably (from the fossil record) wiped them out, and unlike our branch, they weren't adaptable enough to sail off to islands or cross the land bridge to north america. They just grew outdated.

I would argue, however, that there are semi-intelligent species out there. Certain breeds of ape are extremely intelligent, such as the gorilla and the chimpanzee, while others are less intelligent and some are ... well, frickin' stupid. A few breeds of dog are wicked smart, such as the golden retriever, though it is the product of forced evolution by man, and it hasn't been such a distinct evolutionary process that it prevents viable breeding. Look at the African Gray parrot. Dolphins? Certain whale species? Don't be so pompous to believe that humans have a monopoly on intelligence, though we certainly have the most developed intellect of the bunch.