1 / 12

Understanding Primates: Insights into Human Evolution and Behavior

This chapter explores the significance of studying primates to understand human evolution. It highlights key aspects such as homology and analogy, revealing how adaptations in primates provide insights into the evolutionary history of humans. Derived traits like opposable thumbs, enhanced sight, and brain size are discussed. The chapter distinguishes between prosimians and anthropoids, detailing various species, their social structures, and adaptations. The close genetic relationship between chimpanzees and humans is emphasized, showcasing the importance of primate studies in anthropology.

alan-acosta
Télécharger la présentation

Understanding Primates: Insights into Human Evolution and Behavior

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Chapter 5: Introduction to the Primates • Why do anthropologists study primates? • To understand human evolution by: • Homology • The same adaptations in close relatives offer clues to design structures in ancestral and contemporary human populations (culture?) • Analogy • How do other primates respond to the same and different environmental pressures?

  2. Derived Traits • Opposable Thumbs • Nails (no claws) • Hind limb dominated locomotion • Reduced sense of smell • Increase importance of sight (stereoscopic vision) • Small litters • Large Brain • Unspecialized teeth

  3. Distribution

  4. Two types (suborder): • Prosimians: VCL, Lemurs (Madagascar), Aya-ayes, Lorises, & Galagos. • Anthropoides: Old and New World Monkey and Apes (humans) (see table 5-3)

  5. New World Monkeys • Marmosets and tamarins (small bodied) • Twins • Polyandry • Monogamous families with alloparental care • Others: • Howlers • Spider • Wooly • Squirrel • Capuchins (tool users) • Night monkeys (owl monkey) • others

  6. Old World Monkeys • Colobus & Lagurs (harems) • Macaques, baboons & vervets (multi-male and multi-female, female phylopatry) • Apes • Lack tails • Bigger brains • Y-Shaped pattern on lower molar

  7. Lesser apes: Gibbons and Siamangs (Asia, brachiators, Monogamous)

  8. Great Apes: • Gorilla (Africa, polygamous harems)

  9. Orangutans (Asia, solitary, home range, rape )

  10. Common Chimps (Africa, promiscuous, multi-male and multi-female)

  11. Bonobos “Pygmy Chimps” (Africa, very promiscuous, multi-male and multi-female, matriarchal)

  12. Chimps and Humans are our closest relatives (98.4% Genes)

More Related