Anth 311
What are
Primates?
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Why Study Primates
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Closely related – share a common
ancestor
Live in similar environments as our
common ancestors
Extremely diverse – size, habitats,
diet, social organization – help us
to understand what shapes
behavior
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Primates are one Order
of Mammals
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“warm blooded”
give birth to live young
young fed milk from the mammary
glands of the mother
etc...
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Primate Characteristics and taxonomy
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Anth 311
Some Other Orders in
Class Mammalia
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Carnivora - bears, cats, dogs
Chiroptera - bats
Cetacea - whales, dolphins,
porpoises
Artiodactyla - cows, pigs, deer
(even toed ungulates)
Rodentia - rats, squirrels, beavers
Insectivora - shrews and moles
Primates - prosimians, monkeys,
apes, and humans
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Prosimians
PRIMATES
Apes
Humans
Monkeys
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Distribution of living
nonhuman Primates
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Primate Characteristics and taxonomy
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Anth 311
Primate pattern
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No one trait identifies all primates
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General tendencies expressed to a
greater or lesser degree by all primates
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10-12 traits identified by Le Gros Clark,
modified by Napier (as presented in
video)
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Fall into 4 main complexes
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4 groups of primate
characteristics
1.
2.
3.
4.
Grasping Hands
Visual System
Large Complex Brains
and Associated Behavior
Skeletal and Dental
Features
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1. Grasping Hands
Pentadactyly
Opposable thumb
Nails not claws
Sensitive tactile pads
Power Grip
Precision Grip
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Primate Characteristics and taxonomy
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The human foot is
an exception
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2. Vision and Olfaction
• forward
facing eyes
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2. Vision and Olfaction
• forward
facing eyes
• stereoscopic vision
• depth perception
• greater reliance on
vision
• elaboration of the
visual centers of the
brain
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Primate Characteristics and taxonomy
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Anth 311
•reduced reliance
on olfaction
•reduction of the
snout (flatter faces)
Monkey
Lemur
•reduction of the
olfactory centers of
the brain
Baboon
Dental
Snout
Human
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3. Large, Complex Brains
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large brains relative to
body size
learning and socialization
very important for survival
great ability to learn from
experience
great reliance on learning
reduction on reliance upon
instinct
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Primates typically give
birth to a single young
(not litters)
Infants have grasping
hands (even humans)
Cling to mother, not left
in nests
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Primate Characteristics and taxonomy
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Anth 311
Tendency towards sociality
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4. Features
of the skeleton
& dentition
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Generalized limb
structure
Generalized, flexible
morphology
Non-specialized
physical form
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For example:
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retention of clavicle
(collar bone)
Greater
range of
motion
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Primate Characteristics and taxonomy
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Another example:
Retention of 2 bones in
•forearm (radius, ulna)
•lower leg (tibia, fibula).
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Reduction in the # of teeth
Ancestral mammal
3.1.4.3
Primitive primates
(Prosimians & NWM)
2.1.3.3
Later primates
(OWM, Apes, Humans)
2.1.2.3
Chimpanzee 2.1.2.3 dental formula
(chimpanzee - 32 teeth in total)
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Primitive vs Advanced
Primitive = more closely resembling the common
ancestor to the group. Usually refers to a lineage
that has been around longer.
Primitive species vs primitive traits
Primitive vs derived
Primitive does not equal
 Less successful
 Less evolved
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Primate Characteristics and taxonomy
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Anth 311
Trunkal
Uprightness
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At least while feeding
and resting
Not
necessarily
while
moving
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Theories on the origin of
primates
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Primate Characteristics and taxonomy
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Anth 311
The Arboreal Theory (Le Gros Clark) - the
primate pattern represents an adaptation
to an arboreal habitat, to living in the
trees.
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The Visual Predation Theory the primate pattern
represents an adaptation to
foraging for insects in the
terminal branches of trees
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The Angiosperm Radiation or Angiosperm
Coevolution Theory – primate pattern
represents feeding on diverse diet of parts
of flowering plants and associated animals.
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Primate Characteristics and taxonomy
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