primates and humans Flashcards
general primate classifications
strepsirhines: lemurs and lorises
haplohimes: tarsiers, new work monkeys, old world monkeys, apes
what are apes
hominoids; chimps, gorillas and humans
past classification of primates
promiscians and athiopoids
promiscians
past classification; lemurs, lorises and tarsiers
anthiopoids
past classification; new world, old world monkeys and apes
strepsirhines
lemurs and lorsies
halporhines
tarsiers, new world monkeys, old world monkeys and apes
hands and feed adptations of primates?
- highly drived hands and feet: for GRASPING
- flat nails instead of claws
- sensitive tactile pads with thin ridges on the top of fingers: for sensitivity and better grasping
what do humans lack in hand adaptations
grasping feet
smell adaptation of primates
decreased reliance on smell:
reduction of snouth length and nasal structures in brain regions as smelll less important
tree shrews (big) to bush baby (medium) to tarsier (tiny size)
what smell trait have haplorhines lost
lost rhinarium; the moist skin around the nostrils
increased reliance of vision of PRIMATES adaptations
- forward facing eyes
- enclosed bony orbit (post-orbital bar) for better protectio nof eyes
- binocular and streoscopic vision (trichomatic vision and 3D vision due to overlapping fields of vision)
- trichomatic/dichromatic colour vision
give an example of postorbital change across species
in racoons; open post orbital
in gibbion; is closed
in lemurs; is partially closed
why did primates evolve binocular and stereoscopic vision
for greater depth perception; other mammals dont see distance as intense; rather have wider vision
- its important to manage space and lolomition in compled 3D habitats
what does trichomatic colour vision enable
- in apes, old world monkeys and some new worl monkeys
3 cells for colour process (red, green blue); trichomatic; allows for frugivorous primates to distinish fruit
locomotion patterns in primates
primates have a generalize part-cranial anatomy similar to dolpins that allows for diverse variations of movement such as:
- quadrupedalism
- vertical climbing and leaping
- suspensory and brachiation
- knuckle walking
- bipedalism
explain quadrupedalism
- is found in terrestial or arboreal primates such as baboons
- hindlims/forelimps of equal length
- arboreal species have long tails to aid in balance
- lateral position of shoulder blade; restricits movement of shoulder horizontally
explain vertical climbing/leaping
‘jumping primates’ such as lemurs
- long powerful hind limbs
- long flexible backs
- long fingers for grasping support when landing