ANAT2009 L2: Primates and Apes

Aim:
To present a comparative approach to human anatomy
- by examining the similarities and differences in human and other primate anatomy
(especially pongids/apes)
- examination of the similarities and differences will throw light on what is unique
about humans and
- how human anatomy evolved























Primate apes
- 3 Characteristics of Primates
- Classification of Primates
- Hierarchy of Biological Classification
- Evolutionary/phylogenetic trees
- Primate origins


3 Characteristics of primates (adaptive trends)
- Arboreal (living in trees) adaptations
- Maintenance of dietary variation
- Large amount of parental care invested in a small number of offspring


Arboreal adaptations of primates
- Arboreal Primates have:
o Nails instead of claws
o large, flat, sensitive tactile pad Tactile pad require flat nail
o Free mobility of digit
o Generalised/primitive (not inferior) limb structure
o Visual adaptation
o Reduction of sense of smell
o Trunk uprightness


Arboreal primates have free mobility of digits
- The digits of arboreal primates are long and prehensile allow hooking ability
- Some arboreal primates have opposable fingers and toes
o Humans dont have opposable toes
- Free mobility of digits allow Precision grip and Power grip


Arboreal primates have generalised/primitive (character of an early stage in evolution)
limb structure:
- Clavicle
- Rotation of shoulder increase range of movement in arboreal primates
- Rotation of wrist, radius, ulna flexible forearm


Visual adaptations of arboreal primates
- Arboreal primates have Forward facing eye sockets high distinguishing ability
greater ability in 3D world (e.g. distance)
- Forward facing eye sockets are bound by postorbital bar protect eye from
distortion (caused by movement of muscle on side of skull)
- Forward facing eye sockets allow fine discrimination and fine colour vision


Arboreal Primates have a reduced sense of smell
- Use of touch instead to examine (EXCEPT loris, lemur)
- Reduction in snout size (EXCEPT baboons)


Arboreal Primates sit upright trunk uprightness
- Sitting upright may be a preadaptation to becoming bipedal (bipedalism)


2. Maintenance of dietary variation in primates
- Primates retain different types of teeth
o Incisor, Canine, Premolar, Molar
o Retention allow for unspecialised diet omnivorous diet
- However, number of teeth is reduced



Primates invest large amounts of parental care in small number of offspring
- The large amount of parental care enable offspring to learn more Higher
chance of survival
- Offspring develop complex and expanded brain (esp. visual and association areas)


Classification of primates
- Bat/primate
o Tree shrew
- Prosimian
o Lemur
o Loris
o Tarsier
- Old World monkey
o Baboon
- Apes
o Gibbon & Siamang Hylobatus
o Pygmy chimpanzee OR Bonobo (Pan Paniscus)
- Great Apes
o Uran-Utan (Genus Pongo)
o Common chimpanzee (Pan Troglodytes)
o Gorilla


Bat/primate Tree shrew
- Share similarities with both primate and bat
- Good grasping abilities
- HOWEVER, have claws (instead of nails) and long, projecting snout




Prosimian Lemur
- Madagascar ONLY
- Many are Nocturnal

- Good eyesight
- Nails on some digits
- Good grasping abilities
- HOWEVER, Long snout (not characteristic of primates)


Prosimian Loris
- Africa/Asia
- Nocturnal

- Good eyesight
- Nails on some digits
- Good grasping abilities
- HOWEVER, Long snout


Prosimian Tarsier
- Southeast Asia

- Smaller snout
- Forward facing eyes
- Eye sockets have posterior bony wall
- More parental care
- Larger brain
- Complete stereoscopic vision
- Elongated tarsus bones of the foot


New World Monkeys Spider monkey
- South America

- Quadrupedal
- Broad flat nose
- Retain 3 premolars
- YES tail Prehensile tail
- Larger brain


Old World monkey Baboon
- Africa/Asia

- Two premolars (like humans)
- Mainly arboreal
- Mainly Quadrupedal
- YES Tails but NOT prehensile
- Larger brain
- Good manipulation abilities
- Long gestation (pregnancy)


Apes Gibbon & Siamang Hylobatus
- Relatively small
- Large brain
- Long gestation (pregnancy)
- Long limbs
- NO tail*
- Broadening trunk

*Apes=NO tail, Monkeys=YES tails

Ape Pygmy chimpanzee OR Bonobo (Pan Paniscus)
- Arboreal/terrestrial
- Knuckle walker
- Walk upright 25% of time
- Large brain
- Long gestation
- Broadening trunk
- Long limbs
- NO tail
- Smaller than common chimp
- Larger breasts
- More individual facial features
- Sex differences NOT marked


Great Apes Oran-Utan (Genus Pongo)
- Borneo, Sumatra

- Large brain
- Long gestation
- Broadening trunk
- Long limbs
- NO tail
- Fist walker
- Solitary
- Marked sex differences






Great Apes Common chimpanzee (Pan Troglodytes)
- Africa ONLY
- Arboreal/terrestrial
- Large brain
- Long gestation
- Broadening trunk
- Knuckle walker
- Long limbs
- NO tail
- Sex differences NOT marked


Great Apes Gorilla
- Largest of great ape
- Large brain
- Long gestation
- Broadening trunk
- Long limbs
- NO tail
- Knuckle walker
- Large jaws & teeth
- MARKED sexual differences (dimorphism)


Hierarchy of Biological Classification/Taxonomy of Primates
- Primata (order)
- Homo (genus)
- Sapiens (species)




Species
- A group of actually or potentially interbreeding natural population, reproductively
isolated from other groups
- Give birth to FERTILE offspring
- E.g. 2 different SPECIES of dogs interbreed to produce FERTILE offspring


Naming of Primates
- Genus name begins with a CAPITAL letter
- Species name begins with a SMALL letter
- Both names italicised or underlined
o Homo sapiens Human
Homo= Human, sapiens= wise
o Pan troglodytes chimpanzee
Pan= god of the forest, troglodytes= cave dweller
o Australopithecus africanus


Evolutionary/Phylogenetic trees
- Once organism have been classified their ancestral relationship can be inferred
by drawing an evolutionary/phylogenetic tree

- Phylogenetic relationships are inferred on the basis of patterns of SHARED
similarities
o Similarities may be morphological, behavioural, physiological, chromosomal
or biochemical


What makes a good evolutionary tree?
- Must be able to ABSORB new fossil into tree


Primate origins
- Primate were among first group of placental mammals to differentiate (thus very
old order)
- Living primates 5% of all primates that have existed
o 95% of primates are extinct


Earliest evidence of primates
- Late Cretaceous period (65 Myr ago)
- North America, North Africa
- Called Plesiadapids moused sized, fruit eaters, quadruped


Earliest evidence of Hominoids (ancestor of apes and hominids)
- Hominids modern and extinct humans
- Miocene (20 Myr ago)
- Called proconsul
o Quadruped
o Suspensory ability
o No tail
o Opposable thumb
o Increased brain size