Primates

Question 1

Who are the primates?

Answer 1

• 350+ species
• 11 genera are extinct
• Origin approx 65mya

Question 2

Diversity

Answer 2

• Body size
• Locomotion
• Feeding
• Reproduction

Question 3

Grasping hands and feet

Answer 3

• Five digits on each hand and foot
• Flat nails and sensitive areas on the
ends of their digits
• The first digits are opposable

Question 4

Types of Primate

Answer 4

Haplorhines :
- New World Monkeys 
- Old World Monkeys 
- Asian Apes
- African Apes
- Hominids
and 
Strepsirrhines

Question 5

Less reliance on smell, more on vision

Answer 5

binocular vision -> stereoscopic 3D
some of us have colour vision, why?
• Fruit vs sexual swellings

Question 6

Encephalization quotient

Answer 6

Large brain relative to body size

Question 7

Complex social organization

Answer 7

Living in permanent groups	
– approx.	70%	primate genera	
– approx.	20%	other mammals	
1. single female and her offspring 
2. one-male-several-female group 
3. monogamous family group 
4. multimale-multifemale group
5. polyandrous family group 
6. fission-fusion society

Question 8

Strepsirhini

Answer 8

• “wet-nosed”	
• Characteristics	
– Large eyes & ears	
– Only primates to	primarily	rely	on smell	for hunting	and	social interaction	
• Examples	
– Lemurs	
– Aye-ayes	
– Lorises

Question 9

Haplorhini

Answer 9

• “dry-nosed”
• Larger and more diverse category, broken up into 3 main groups
– Anthropoids
• catarrhines (Old World monkeys and apes)
• platyrrhines (New World monkeys)
– Tarsiers?
– (extinct) Omomyids

Question 10

Primate life histories

Answer 10

• Long gestation periods
• Small lipers
• Large neonates
• Slow post-natal growth
• Late age at first reproduction
• Long lives as compared to other mammals of similar body weight.

Question 11

Why slow life histories?

Answer 11

• Learning to acquire skills, knowledge
• Big brains and long lives- interconnected features of primates
• Brain expensive organ, slower physical growth as a trade-off

Question 12

Why larger brains in primates?

Answer 12

• Social intelligence hypothesis-benefits of group living -> requires computational power
• Due to feeding niche, or fruit in scarce and patchy areas? Need memory and planning!
• Or methods for extracting foods? Nuts, digging, insects through tool use..

Question 13

Theory of mind

Answer 13

The ability to atribute mental states (intentions, emotions) to others (e.g. what someone might be thinking about what you think).
• Essential to form strong, lasting social bonds
• In human children theory of mind (ToM) typically develops around age -3-5 years.
• Children with Down’s syndrome, but many with autism not seen ToM at this stage
• Disputed what species have exhibited