Primate Biology and Diversity

What are the characteristics of haplorhines?

-larger brains, dimorphic sexually in body size, fewer teeth, convergent eyes with ring of bone, see in color

What are the two different ways species can be grouped on a cladogram?

1. Strepsirhini (primitive characteristics) 2. Haplorhini (range of features, lost primitive)

What are the dental formulae for mammals

3 incisors 1 canine 4 premolars 3 molars 3.1.4.3 Upper jaw 3.1.4.3 Lower jaw

What is the toothcomb, which teeth are found in it, and which primates have one?

Anterior teeth (incisors and canines) that have been titled forward, creating a scraper that is useful for grooming -strepsirhines have this, specifically lemurs and loris

Where do humans fall in the classification of primates?

As hominoids, a branch of catarrhines, stemming from anthropoideaf, shared with apes

What are the main groups of apes and how do we classify the great apes?

Great apes: chimpanzees, bonobos, orangutans, gorillas -tend to be larger than other primates Lesser apes: gibbons and siamangs -form pair bonds with one male, one female and offspring are the basic social unit

Clades

Group of ogranisms that evolved from a common ancestor

Grades

Group of organisms sharing the same complexity and level of evolution

What are the dental formulae generally for mammals, primates, strepsirrhines, New World monkeys, Old World monkeys, and apes?

Homodontic- all teeth similar inform, sharp, and replaced continuously throughout life Heterodontic - different types of teeth present • Some specialized for chewing • One set of deciduous - baby or milk teeth are replaced by adult teeth as other mammal 1.Incisors - cuVng teeth in the front of the jaw 2. Canines - long sharp "dog-‐like" teeth 3.Premolars- more flattened teeth also called bicuspids 4.Molars - flat chewing teeth •Functional differences between teeth enable food to be processed before injection •Numbers and patterns of teeth are distinctive for different mammals. Primates are quite ancestral/primative compared to many other mammals.

What types of traits are used to construct phylogenetic trees?

Homologous and analagous

Derived similarity

Homologous traits -single origin -implies close relationship -monophyletic groups

What does a phylogenetic tree represent?

Living species at tips, branches are groups of closely related organisms -branch points are speciation events

Where do the different major groups of primates live?

Mainly found in tropical regions of Africa, South and Central America, and Asia (and Gibraltar) Fossils found everywhere except Australia and Antarctica

Compare New World vs. Old World Monkey features.

New World: Platyrrhines- nostrils are round and separated by a wide nasal septum; arboreal Old World: Catarrhines (cercopithecoids)- nostrils are close together and point downward ("hook-nosed"); some arboreal, some terrestrial, narrow face, sitting pad, long body trunk

Where do new and old world monekys live (both geographically and in terms of local environment)?

New: Latin America, southern Argentina, Mexico Old: Africa and Asia, mostly tropics or subtropics

What are the dental formulae for primates

Old world higher primates (anthroods): 2.1.2.3 New World primates: 2.1.3.3

What are the characteristic features of mammals/ primates?

Primates are mammals -Mammary glands for nursing infants -hair and fur which provide insulation -homeothermic: mammals maintain constant internal temperature

How do the characteristics of smell, vision, hands, fingernails, encephalization level(brain size and complexity), locomotion mechanism relate to primates?

Reduced sense of smell and hearing, enhanced vision, enhanced sense of touch in finders and toes, generalized skeletal structure, larger brain size and greater intelligence, grasping with hands and feet

What are the characteristics of strepsirrhines?

Retained priimitive charactersitics -rhinarium (wet nose) -increased dependence on smell -specialized diets and behavirs -larger olfactory bulb compared to monkeys -smoother brain -nocturnal -grooming claw

Primitive similarity

Shared ancestral characters -single origin -does not imply close relationship

What is the difference between phylogeny and taxonomy?

Taxonomy is the science of naming and classifying organisms. It is done by looking at shared characteristicsIt and phylogenetic relationships and DNA evidence into account. Phylogeny is the evolutionary history of a species or group of species. They separate organisms by evolutionary relationships (clades)

Adaptive Radiation

The diversification of an ancestral group of organisms into new forms that are adapted to specific environmental niches -out of one species branch multiple closely related species

What are postorbital bars, postorbital closure, and which primates have which? What role might these structures perform?

The presence or absence of bone behind the eye. Steps have post orbital bars, Haps have PO closure. They allow forward or side facing eyes.

Which primates might have a tapetum lucidum and how could this structure be useful?

The prosimians, with the exception of the tarsiers and several diurnal Eulemur species. It provides more light to the retina making night vision better. Bigger eyes were gained.

Why are tarsiers difficult to classify taxonomically? tarsier or an aye-aye?

Traditionally prosimians, but share derived characteristics with anthropoids (lacking a rhinarium) Cladistically anthropoids

What are the major adaptive trends of primates?

Wilfred le Gros Clark: 1. Arboreal: adapted for life in the trees 2. Dietary Plasticity: eat a wide variety of foods 3. Parental investment: spend a lot of time and care on relatively few offspring

What are the two major taxonomic divisions of primates?

strep and hap

Where do tarsiers live?

A series of islands; Sulawesi, Borneo, and the Philippines

Convergent similarity

Analagous traits -independent origins -does not imply close relationship -polyphyletic groups

What are the differences between bilophodont and Y-5 molars? Which primates have which types?

Bilophodont refers to lower molars, in Old World monkeys, that have two ridges Y-5 is a hominoids pattern of lower molar cusps, which has Y shaped groove; generally apes

What do the nodes represent?

Common ancestors and speciation events from those common ancestors