Chapter 6 Flashcards

1
Q

mammals are divided into 3 groups:

A
  1. Metatheria (aka marsupials)— that reproduce without a placenta, including the marsupials
    e.g. kangaroos give birth to an embryonic offspring that goes into the pouch, latches onto nipple and further develops
  2. Prototheria— that reproduce by egg-laying, then the nurse young from nipples. The Australian platypus and echidna are the only living monotremes
    Eutheria— that reproduce with the placenta and uterus
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2
Q

What exactly is a primate?

A

primates are mammals with grasping hand, large brains, a high degree of learned rather than innate behaviour and a suite of other traits

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3
Q

the order primates are dived into 2:

A

strepsirhine (strepsirhini)—

haplorhine (haplorhini)—

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4
Q

what are strepsirhine (strepsirhini

A

suborder of the order primate that includes the prosimians, excluding the tarsier

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5
Q

what are haplorhine (haplorhini)

A

suborder of the border primate that includes the answer anthropoids and the tarsier

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6
Q

Some Taxonomists use a more traditional naming system, which is based on aspects of anatomy, for the major primate groups:

A

prosimian and anthropoid suborders

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7
Q

what are prosimian—

A

of the primate suborder Prosimi that includes the lemurs, lorises, galagos and tarsiers

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8
Q

what are anthropoid—

A

of the primate suborder anthropoid that includes the Monkeys, apes and hominids

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9
Q

Distinguish primates from other mammals by a set of traits that they all share:

A

GENERALIZED BODY PLAN
GRASPING HANDS WITH OPPOSABLE THUMBS OR BIG TOES
FLATTENED NAILS
FORWARD FACING EYES WITH STEREOSCOPIC VISION
GENERALIZED TEETH
PETROSAL BULLA
ENCLOSED BONY EYE ORBITS IN THE SKULL

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10
Q

describe GENERALIZED BODY PLAN

A

primates body plan is generalize, not specialized like a giraffes neck is (for example)
their body type gives them much versatility… able to have many modes of travel (running and walking), swinging leaping, etc
all non human primates are quadrupeds (walk on all 4s… their hinds are longer than front legs to help with support when leaping and sitting, they can actually run and walk as well as swing from trees!)

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11
Q

describe GRASPING HANDS WITH OPPOSABLE THUMBS OR BIG TOES

A

this is believed to be a fundamental primate adaptation
although some strepsirhine don’t fully exhibit this trait
Nonhuman primates have an opposable hallux (big toe)
humans do not have this but have developed a foot that makes bipedal striding easier

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12
Q

describe FLATTENED NAILS

A

instead of claws

this the case for all primaries except one group, the marmosets and tamarins

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13
Q

describe

FORWARD FACING EYES WITH STEREOSCOPIC VISION

A

gives excellent depth perception because the overlapping field of vision provide a three dimensional view of the world… even though we loose 360 vision it is still beneficial
the arboreal hypothesis; for the origin of private adaptation that focuses on the value of grasping hands and stereoscopic vision for life in the trees— by Frederick Wood-Jones and George Elliott Smith in the 1920s
1970’s Matthew Cartmill argued that squirrels also did this but were more adapt with greater agility when it came to working the trees… he argued that we should consider how the very earliest pirates and their close kin lived in order to understand primate origins
he came up with the visual predation hypothesis

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14
Q

what is the visual predation hypothesis

A

— hypothesis for the origin of primate adaptation that focuses on the value of grasping hands and stereoscopic vision for catching small prey

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15
Q

describe GENERALIZED TEETH

A

shape tells us a lot about diet
most nonhuman primates eat leaves, fruit and occasional animal protein (insects)… only the tarsier eats mainly animal protein
nonhuman primates do not have specialized teeth (for either meat or greens)
dental arcade— the parabolic arch that forms the upper or lower row of teeth
there are 4 types of teeth arranged in the following order; 2 incisors, one canine, two premolars
exception to this is the New World Monkeys who have a third premolar and the strepsirhines who have varying dental formulas

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16
Q

describe PETROSAL BULLA

A

the tiny bit of skeleton that protects the inner ear
single bony trait that all primates share
occurs in no other mammalian group

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17
Q

describe ENCLOSED BONY EYE ORBITS IN THE SKULL

A

could protect the primate more efficiently than other lower mammals
this is more complete in haplorhines than jstrepsirhins who tend to have just a bony ring around the orbit

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18
Q

Life History Traits of primates:

A

SINGLE OFFSPRING
LARGE BRAINS
EXTENDED ONTOGNY

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19
Q

describe SINGLE OFFSPRING

A

nearly all primates give birth to at least one, many mammals (especially smaller ones) have litters ortwins
marmosets and tamarins are the exception that give birth to twins
prouder fewer offspring so they can invest much time and energy in keeping the current one(s) healthy and alive

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20
Q

describe LARGE BRAINS

A

primates have high degree of encephalization, or evolved increase int he volume of the neocortex— the part of the brain that controls higher cognitive function; the cerebrum
more obvious int he brain of haplorhine than strepsirhines
we can tell it is bigger due to the increased # of convolutions (ridges on the surface of the brain)
reason for the expansion of the brain is debated because it is so large that is metabolically expensive to grow

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21
Q

describe EXTENDED ONTOGNY

A

primates live by learned behaviours as much as they do by hardwired instinct
they are socialized so the offspring can learn
ontogeny— gorilla may live 20x longer than a mouse, but it takes 15 years to sexually mature where a mouse only takes 2 weeks (80x longer)
it takes much longer for primates o learn all the skills they need (to live and socialize) where the mouses (for example) only need to learn to find food and water!

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22
Q

wha is ontogeny

A

the life cycle of an organism from conception to death

primates are notable for the extended length of each stage

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23
Q

are primates active during the day or the night

A

primate species that are active during the day have colour vision whereas species that are active during night rely on smell

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24
Q

define nocturnal—

A

active at night

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25
define diurnal—
active during daylight hours
26
fact: most strepsorhines are nocturnal and all except one haplorhines are dinural
most strepsorhines are nocturnal and all except one haplorhines are dinural
27
what is sociality—
group living, a fundamental trait of haplorhine primates helps primates access mates and fend off predators of the haplorhine primates, only the orangutang is not in social groups
28
are monkeys more evolved than lemurs
and do not think that monkeys are more evolved than lemurs (for example), natural selection just favoured some sociality traits in monkeys than other species
29
are there set ways to classify primates
not all taxonomists agree on how to classify primates, and one nonhuman primate, the tarsier, straddles the 2 suborders
30
what are The Strepsirhines
include the lemurs of Madagascar, and the lorises and galas of mainland Africa and tropical Asia strepsirhines and prosimians are not completely synonymous; one prosimian primate, the tarsiers is a haplorhine not a strepsirhine all strepsirhines share the same anatomical features and lack of complex sociality
31
what are The Haplorhines
includes the tarsier, the new world monkeys, old world monkeys, apes and hominins guided more by vision than olfaction living ones have a lower jaw that is fused at the midline in adulthood; in prosimians and most other animals, the jaw is 2 pieces joined by cartilage with a few exceptions, most are diurnal and live in social groups
32
what are THE TARSIERS
haplorhine primes that are thought to occupy an evolutionary position between the prosmian and anthropoid primates have a mixture of the categories traits generally considered to be closer to haplorhine have an owl-like ecological role (nocturnal, same diet) live monogamous
33
what are The New World Monkeys classified as
classified as playtyrrhini— infraorder of the order. Primates that is synonymous with the New World monkeys or ceboids
34
wha are the The New World Monkeys
in superfamily Ceboidea refers to the flat shape of the nose all share 3 features; small body size 3 premolar teeth arboreality— some even have prehensile tail— grasping tail possessed by some species of the primate families Cebidae and Atelidae Ceboidea are classified as 5 families; cebidae, pithecidae, atelidae, aotidae, callitrichdae callitrichdae— unique for treat that resemble those of lower mammals some species polyandrous occurs— mating system in which one female mates with multiple males
35
what are Old World Monkeys
infraorder catarrhini— infraorder of the order Primates that includes the Old World monkeys, apes and hominins as a family, they share ischial callosities— thickened calluses on the rump that presumably make sitting on rough surfaces more comfortable also have double ridged molar teeth (aka bilophodont molars) thought to be evolved to eat leaves wide range of sizes 2 subfamilies of the Cercopithecidae merit special attention; the Colobines (aka leaf monkeys and others like them) and the colobus of Africa— they have evolved a semichambered stomach that resembles that of a cow and can digest tough, cellulose-laden foods in an organ called the foergut this helps them find food in dense forests that they wouldn't have been able to eat otherwise, yet these subfamilies have the highest nicer of infanticides they have a cheek pouch to store food Some old world monkeys have estrus— hormonally influenced period of sexual receptivity in some female mammals with corresponds to the timing of ovulation during this, the skin around her genitals flats and acts as a billboard of her fertility
36
what is superfamily; hominin (Homininae)—
member of our own human family past or present
37
what does hominin (Homininae) include
member of the gibbon, or lesser ape, family
38
what is the subfamily of hominins
pongid (Pongidae)— 1/4 great ape species: gorilla, chimpanzee, bonobo or organutan
39
what is brachiation—
mode of arm-hanging and arm-swinging that uses a rotating shoulder to suspend the body of an ape or homonin between a branch or to travel between branches this arm provides basically the fame function as the prehensile tail only in great apes do we see technologies that resemble simple versions of human tool
40
true or false despite their social behaviour, primates parts of ecosystems
true
41
what is ecology—
the study of the interrelationships of plants, animals and the physical environment in which they live
42
how does the environment influence natural selection
the environment provides a template in which natural selection molds behaviour at the same time, primates influence the ecology in the sense that they spread seeds
43
what kind diet do most primates have
most primates are herbivores exception to this are many lower primates and a few higher primates (including humans) one primate group is entirely carnivouris— the tarsier of SE Asia
44
Trees don't want the animals to eat all their leave (they would die!), so they do what
Trees don't want the animals to eat all their leave (they would die!), so they produce fruit which they actually want to be eaten so the seeds can be spread!
45
what are folivores—
animals that eat a diest composed mainly of leaes, or foliage trees and these do not get a long, as the trees are at constant risk of dying trees and fruit eaters get along really nicely
46
what is phenology—
the leafing and fruiting cycles of a forest
47
many trees have asynchronous cycles what is this
when one tree is fruit ridden, the other has non to ensure that the whole stand of trees is not cleared at once
48
many primates have developed specialized diets that allow for what reaosn
for them to coexist with other species
49
what are secondary compounds—
toxic chemical compounds found in the leaves of many plants which the plants use as a defence against leaf-eating animal specialize gut can digest this! only some animals have it this allows the cohabitation of monkeys that can do this and monkey that cant
50
what is activity budget—
the pater of walking, eating, moving, socializing and sleeping the all nonhuman primates engage in each day allows the primate to compensate for the calories expended with calories exhumed linked to dietary quality; those that live on low calorie diets are not as productive and active as those that live on high calorie diets problem with primates is that it competes for food with many other mammals (the high calorie diet)
51
which is more important; intragroup feeding competition or intergroup feeding competition
scientists have debated over which is the more important influence on the evolution of primate social systems; competition between members of the groups (intragroup feeding competition) or competition between groups (intergroup feeding competition)
52
what is intragroup feeding competition
occurs when the group wants to eat from the same tree (fir example) and get the ripest fruit, the older and stronger males would get it first and that would cause conflict because the weaker ones would get it last or not at all (contest feeding competition) this causes more problems because the weaker ones wont be able to get enough food and they will stay weaker and have lower fertility and it is a cycle they can't escape
53
what is competition between groups
(intergroup feeding competition)
54
what is scramble feeding competition—
when everyone gets food in the end (if leaves are all over the ground) there is much less competition here and most members of the group end up eating well… there is not an apparent/strict hierarchy here
55
what is home range—
the spatial area used by a primate group all primates live in one, can be smaller than a football field or more than a few km long, this range must contain all the things they need to survive (water shelter etc) they often overlap slightly or completely
56
what is core area—
the part of a home range that is most intensively used
57
whats territory—
the part of a home range that is defended against other members of the same species this defence can be in the form of vocalizing intimidation, chasing, physical violence or even lethal means
58
why be territorial?
defend food sources that are highly nutritional, because females are on these territories
59
lack of field observation, but can make a few generalizations about predation:
small bodies nonhuman primates are more vulnerable than larger species many nonhuman primates exhibit behaviours that appear to have evolved in response to a threat of predation; alarm calls, for example the pattern of predation on the colobus depend very much on where the colobus lived relative to the border of the territory of the chimpanzee community; if there were individuals near their core, they would be much more aggressive and likely to kill than if they were on the edges of home range
60
if primates live so close together, why isn't there more competition for food?
there is and was; ecological theory predicts that when there are 2+ organisms with very similar food preferences, sharing the same space, they will diverge from one another in some critical aspect of their niche or ecological role e.g. 2 monkeys that eat the same thing will be found to eat different things when food is scarce; you can find one series up in the trees and the other species on the ground niche separation occurs among all primates that are sympatric, and such divergency often is evident only during ecological crunch times although diets may overlap, actual contest for food is rare
61
some primates form polyspecific groups, what are these
made up of 2+ species that travel and feed together for part or all of each day