Anthropology 0680Introduction to Physical Anthropology

Summary 2

The hypothesized last common ancestor of the clade consisting of prosimians and anthropoids would have been distinguished by development of postorbital bar, grasping hands and feet, and flatterned nail on at least the big toe.

extant Prosimii: derived in having grooming claw on 2nd pedal digit, and also toothcomb

Lemuridae: "lemurs"; Madagascar; Lemur, Hapalemur (eats bamboo), Lepilemur (the only nocturnal genus; caecotroph; lacks upper permanent incisors but cud pad instead); folivorous/frugivorous; dichromatism (polychromatism)

Indriidae: Mad.; extremely elongate limbs, hands (vertical clinger and leaper), and feet; 4-toothed toohcomb; round skull, deep face; two diurnal, one nocturnal genus; folivorous/frugivorous

Daubentonia: the aye-aye; Mad; continually growing pair of anterior upper and anterior lower teeth; long skinny fingers, especially 3rd; nocturnal; primarily insectivorous

Cheirogaleidae: mouse lemurs; Mad.; nocturnal; elongate ankle, leaping; some store carbohydrates in tail; eat resins, gums, insects; related to Galagidae and Lorisidae on basis of carotid circulation (having an ascending pharyngeal artery)

Galagidae: bushbabies; sub-saharan Africa; nocturnal; elongate ankle, leaping; at resins, gums, insects; derived in having pneumaticized mastoid region.

Lorisidae: lorises; 2 genera in sub-saharan Africa, 2 in southeast Asia; nocturnal; lack tail; reduced second digit on hand; cautious climbers; eat noxious insects.

Tarsius: islands of southeast Asia; nocturnal; only totally proteinivous primate (will eat vertebrates larger than itself, including neurotoxic snakes); only mammal whose eyeball is larger than its brain; center of debate about being more closely related to other prosimians (it has a grooming claw and reduced toothcomb) or anthropoids (it lacks a tapetum and rhinarium); only primate with (primitive) bicornuate uterus to develop hemorchorial placentation.

fossil Prosimians:

Adapidae: middle-late Eocene, Europe; traditionally thought of as "fossil lemurs"; probably related to only some Malagasy prosimians

Notharctidae: early-middle Eocene, N. America; traditionally thought of as "fossil lemurs"; probably sister taxon of extant prosimians

Tarsiiformes: three groups traditionally recognized, Microchoerine (middle-late Eocene, Europe), Omomyidae and Anaptomorphidae (early Eocene-late Miocene?, N. America and Europe); probably not closely related to Tarsius; look like bushbabies in skull and bushbabies and mouse lemurs in ankel bones.

extant Anthropoids: derived in having early fusion of metopic (frontal) suture and mandibular symphysis; nails on all digits; reduction to 3 premolars in each quadrant of the jaw; partial postorbital closure; hemochorial placentation; simplex uterus; partial fusion of upper lip; lack of rhinarium.

Platyrrhini: broad-nosed primates; New World monkeys

Catarrhini: narrow-nosed primates: Old World monkeys and hominoids