Lecture 5
Modern Primates



What is a Primate?- Why study?
	Closet human relatives- insight into our own descent and behavior
	Generalized skeleton/ Evolutionary trends
		Overview of skeleton
		Clavicle & 5 Digits
	Grasping hands and feet
		Highly mobile digits & divergent big toe & thumb
		Nails and finger pads
	Improved vision
		Orbits convergent (depth perception)
		Post-orbital Bar & often enclosed sockets
		Color vision in most forms
	Reduced snout & sense of smell
	Teeth
		Types of teeth
		Dental Formula
			Primitive Pattern; 3-1-4-3
			Loss of some teeth
		Simple molars; 3, 4, or 5 cusps
		Unspecialized teeth and diet
	Expanded brain
		Vision areas
		Associational- complicated behaviors
	Delayed maturation
		Long period of learning
		Few offspring
		Social living
	Arboreal lifestyle
		Adaptive Niche
			Climbing- hands, vision
			Diet-  smell, teeth
			Complicated environment-  brain
			Nocturnal to Diurnal
		Visual Predation Theory
Primate Adaptations
	Sexual dimorphism
		Body size
		Physical traits
	Locomotion
		Quadrapedalism
			Arboreal
			Terrestrial
		Vertical clinging and leaping
		Brachiating
		Knuckle-walking
		Bipedalism
	Diet Types
		Omnivorous
		Insectivorous
		Frugivorous
		Folivorous
	Social structures
		Unimale, Unifemale
		Unimale, Multifemale
		Multimale, Unifemale
		Multimale, Multifemale
Taxonomy and Phylogenetics
	Classification- tree of similarities
		Taxons
		Linnean Hierarchy
	Phylogeny- tree of shared descent
The modern Primates (Order Primates)
	Prosimians (Suborder Prosimii)
		General traits and range
			Most primitve primates
			Old World
			Post-orbital bar
			Long snout
			3 cusp molars
			Claws on some digits
		Lemurs & Aye Ayes (Infraorder Lemuriformes)
			Madagascar
			Most arboreal quadped, some terrestrial, some leapers
			Lemurs diurnal, Aye-ayes nocturnal
			Lemurs friut/omniv, A-a insectiv
			Lemurs 2-1-3-3; A-a 1-0-1-3/1-0-0-3
		Lorises & Galagos (Infraorder Lorisiformes)
			Africa & Asia
			Nocturnal insectivores
			Loris arbor quad; galago leaper
			2-1-3-3
		Tarsiers (Infraorder Tarsiiformes)
			SE Asia
			Leaper
			Nocturnal insectivore
			2-1-3-3/1-1-3-3
			Nearly closed orbits & shorter snout
	Anthropoids (Suborder Anthropoidea)
		Closed eye sockets
		Nails on all digits
		Reduced snout
		New World Monkeys (Infraorder Platyrrhini)
			General traits and range
				S America
				Arboreal diurnal quad
				Wide septum & outward facing nostrils
			Marmosets & Tamarins (Family Callitrichidae)
				Small size
				Insectiv & Fruit
				2-1-3-2; 3 cusp molars
				monogamous
			Cebids (Family Cebidae)
				Fruit and/or leaves
				Often prehensil tail
				2-1-3-3; 4 cusp molars
				multimale, multifemale
		Old World Higher Primates (Infraorder Catarrhini)
			Africa, Asia, & Europe
			Narrow septum & downward facing nostrils
			2-1-2-3
			Old World Monkeys (Family Cercopithecidae)
				4 cusp molars
				Either 1 or multi male; multi female
				Cercopithecids (Subfamily Cercopithecinae)
					Most successful & wide ranging type
					Frugiv & Omniv
					Arboreal & terrestrial quad
				Colobines (Subfamily Colobinae)
					Africa & Asia
					Arboreal quad
					Foliverous
			Apes & Humans (Superfamily Hominoidea)
				General traits and range
					Short trunk & mobile shoulder
					5 cusp molar
					No tail
				Lesser Apes; Gibbons and Siamangs (Family Hylobatidae)
					SE Asia
					Frugiv brachiators
					monogamous
				Great Apes (Family Pongidae)
					Orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus)
						SE Asia
						Frugiv quad climbers
						Solitary
					Gorillas (Gorilla gorilla)
						Africa
						Foliv knuckle-walk
						1 male, multifemale
					Chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes & P. paniscus)
						Africa
						Omniv Knuckle-walk
						multimale, multifemale
				Hominids (Family Hominidae)
					Humans (Homo sapiens)
						Whole world
						Bipedal  Omniv
						Often monog, but others as well