the primates
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The Primates. Key Questions. Where do humans fit in the world of living things? What are the characteristics of primates? How are humans like the other primates? How are we unique?. Taxonomy. A classification system based on similarities and differences - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
The Primates
Key Questions• Where do humans fit in the world of living
things?
• What are the characteristics of primates?
• How are humans like the other primates? How are we unique?
Taxonomy• A classification system based on
similarities and differences• Phenetic Taxonomy = Following
Linnaeus, based on existing phenotypic features and adaptive behaviors
• Cladistics = Classification system based on order of evolutionary branching
Taxonomy of Humans & Chimps
Human Chimpanzee
Kingdom Animalia Animalia
Phylum Chordata Chordata
Class Mammalia Mammalia
Order Primates Primates
Family Hominidae Pongidae
Genus Homo Pan
Species Sapiens Troglodytes
Class Mammalia• Today, 19 Orders & over 4000 Species!
• 3 major subgroups: 1. Egg-laying (duck-billed platypus)2. Pouched (kangaroo, opossum)3. Placental
Exs. of Placental Orders other than Primates:Rodents (rats, squirrels, beavers)Carnivores (bears, dogs, cats)Insectivores (shrews, moles)Grazing-browsing (cows, hippos, deer, horses, sheep, goats)
Characteristics of Placental Mammals
1. Body hair
2. Relatively long gestation period followed by live birth
3. Ability to maintain constant internal body temperature = “warm-blooded”
Characteristics of Placental Mammals (cont.)
4. Increased brain size5. Mammary glands = origin of the
term “Mammal”6. Different types of teeth =
incisors, canines, premolars, molars
7. Considerable capacity for learning and behavioral flexibility
Primate Taxonomy
PRIMATES (order)
PROSIMIANS ANTHROPOIDEA (suborder)
Platyrrhini Catarrhini(flat nose) (downward nose)
Cercopithecoidea HOMINOIDEA
Lesser Apes Great Apes HOMINIDAE (family)
Prosimians New World Old World Gibbons Orangutan HUMANMonkeys Monkeys Siamangs Gorilla (species) Chimpanzee Bonobo
Prosimiansa. Fat-tailed galago
(mainland Africa)
b. Ruffed lemur (Madagascar)
c. Sifaka (Madagascar)
d. Ring-tailed lemur (Madagascar)
e. Mouse lemur (Madagascar)
f. Slow loris (South Asia)
g. Aye-aye (Islands off Madagascar)
Anthropoids a. Spider monkey (NW monkey)
b. Saki monkey (NW monkey)
c. Drill (OW terrestrial monkey)
d. Tamarin (NW marmoset)
e. Colobus (OW arboreal monkey)
f. Gibbon (OW lesser ape)
g. Gorilla (OW great ape)
Primate Characteristics:Hands & Feet
Enhancement of free mobility of the digits, especially of the thumb (opposability) and big toe
Both used for grasping = Prehensile Replacement of sharp, compressed claws by flat
nails; development of very sensitive tactile pads on the digits
Gripping Tool Use
Prehensile Tail
Primate Characteristics:Brain size & Smell
* Progressive shortening of the snout and reduction in the sense of smell
* Progressive expansion and elaboration of the brain, especially of the cerebral cortex
Primate Characteristics:Vision
Elaboration of the visual apparatus
Development of Stereoscopic Vision (3-D)
Bony sockets enclose eye nerves and muscles
Primate Characteristics: Dentition
* Retention of all tooth types
* Old World Anthropoid Dental Formula = 2.1.2.3 x 2=322.1.2.3
Primate Characteristics: Extended Gestation & Maturation
1. Primates are born at earlier stages of development than many other animals
2. Prolongation of postnatal life periods
3. Humans are born at a particularly early stage because of their larger brain; if born later, the baby’s head would be too large for the mother’s pelvis
Primate Characteristics:Body Stance
Progressive development of upright body stance leading to bipedalism
Primate Characteristics: Summary Large brains
3-D vision, Reduced Sense of Smell
Flexible shoulder joints, Vertical Positioning of Trunk
Hands and feet with five digits
Grasping thumb
Primate Characteristics: Summary (cont.) Flat fingernails instead of claws
Generalized dentition
Extended Gestation and Maturation
Strong Maternal-Offspring Bond
High Degree of Socialization
Primate Species 166 species currently identified
Most are tree dwellers
Most are herbivores (eat fruit or leaves)
Some are omnivores (eat anything)
Primate Distribution
Primate Classification
Primates are divided into two main Suborders:
1. Prosimians: Lemurs, Lorises,Tarsiers
2. Anthropoids: NW & OW Monkeys, Apes, Humans
Primate Taxonomy
PRIMATES (order)
PROSIMIANS ANTHROPOIDEA (suborder)
Platyrrhini Catarrhini(flat nose) (downward nose)
Cercopithecoidea HOMINOIDEA
Lesser Apes Great Apes HOMINIDAE
(family)Prosimians New World Old World Gibbons
Orangutan HUMANMonkeys Monkeys Siamangs Gorilla
(species) Chimpanzee Bonobo
Lemurs, Tarsiers, Aye-Ayes, Lori
Lemurs
Ringtail Lemurs
Lori
Aye-Aye
Aye-Aye The aye-aye shown here
lives on the island of Madagascar. It is a very specialized insect-eater.
Large eyes & good climbing abilities. The aye-aye, and most other prosimians, differ from monkeys and apes in having a moist area of skin on the nose.
Tarsier
Tarsier Large eyes, active at
night Like most of the
prosimians, good grasping ability & nails
Nails on all fingers and most toes, but there are specialized claws on the feet used for grooming called "toilet claws"
Tarsier
Platyrrhine Monkeys
Platyrrhines Flat noses Nostrils point
sideways Many have
prehensile tails
Live in South and Central America
Platyrrhine Noses
Platyrrhine Monkeys: Red-Howler & Spider Monkeys
Platyrrhine Monkeys: Capuchin Monkey
Platyrrhine Monkeys: Tamarins
Catarrhine Monkeys
Downward-pointing nostrils
Evolved and found in Africa and Asia
Catarrhine Nose
Catarrhines
Divided into two Superfamilies:
1. Old World Monkeys 2. Hominoids
Lack tails, have larger skulls, & walk partially upright
Include Gibbons, Gorillas, Orangutans, Humans, & Chimpanzees
Catarrhine Monkeys: Mandrill and Diana
Terrestrial Old World Monkeys: Baboon
Hominoid Taxonomy
Range of Hominoids
Lesser Ape: Gibbon
Great Ape: Orangutan
Great Ape: Gorilla
Gorillas: Knuckle Walking
Great Ape: Chimpanzee