Amphipithecidae

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Amphipithecidae
Temporal range: 38–28.4  Ma
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Primates
Suborder: Haplorhini
Infraorder: Simiiformes
Family:† Amphipithecidae
Godinot, 1994

The Amphipithecidae were simian primates that lived in Late Eocene and Early Oligocene. Fossils have been found in Myanmar, Thailand, and Pakistan. [1] The limited fossil evidence is consistent with, but not exclusive to, arboreal quadrupedalism. In other words, the species may have moved about in trees on four legs, but not with regular leaping as seen in later simians. [2]

Contents

What little is known suggests that they are neither adapiform nor omomyid primates, two of the earliest primate groups to appear in the fossil record. Deep mandibles and mandibular molars with low, broad crowns suggest they are simians, a group that includes monkeys, apes, and humans, but are not within the two major extant groups of simians, the Catarrhini and Platyrrhini. [1] Most scholars place them in the simians. [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] However, some scholars suggest that their similarities to simians is the result of convergent evolution and that they should instead be considered Adapiformes. [1]

According to Beard et al., Siamopithecus is the most basal form of amphipithecid. [1]

They vary in size from 6–7 kg (Siamopithecus and Pondaungia ), to 1–2 kg ( Myanmarpithecus ), with Bugtipithecus being even smaller. [9] A number of scholars speculate that the teeth and jaws of the larger Amphipithecidae indicate that they fed on seeds and fruit with hard exteriors, whilst smaller species such as Myanmarpithecus ate soft fruit. [10] [2]

Pondaungia and Amphipithecus are now considered by scholars to be part of the same genus. [5] [1]

Species

Discoveries

When fossil hunter Barnum Brown was prospecting along areas of Pondaung Sandstone in Myanmar in 1923, he discovered a mandible with three teeth (Amphipithecus mogaungensis). He did not recognise the significance of his find until 14 years later, when Edwin H. Colbert identified the fossil as a new species of primate and the earliest known simian. [11]

In May 2005, the discovery of dozens of new primate fossils, mainly single teeth, in the Bugti Hills of Pakistan, was announced. They were recognised as belonging to three new species, including Bugtipithecus inexpectans, dated back to the Oligocene some 30 million years ago. (The other new species were in the Eosimiidae family). [9]

In July 2009, the discovery of Ganlea megacanina in the late-middle Eocene Pondaung Formation in central Myanmar was announced. It is smaller than Pondaungia, but larger than Myanmarpithecus. Its robust dentary includes a notably large lower canine tooth, but it had tiny incisors. [1]

Related Research Articles

Haplorhini Suborder of primates

Haplorhini, the haplorhines or the "dry-nosed" primates, is a suborder of primates containing the tarsiers and the simians, as sister of the Strepsirrhini ("moist-nosed"). The name is sometimes spelled Haplorrhini. The simians include catarrhines, and the platyrrhines.

Simian Infraorder of primates

The simians, anthropoids or, higher primates are an infraorder of primates containing all animals traditionally called monkeys and apes. More precisely, they consist of the parvorders New World monkeys (Platyrrhini) and Catarrhini, the latter of which consists of the superfamilies Cercopithecidae and apes.

Monkey Animal of the "higher primates" (the simians), but excluding the apes

Monkey is a common name that may refer to most mammals of the infraorder Simiiformes, also known as the simians. Traditionally, all animals in the group now known as simians are counted as monkeys except the apes, a grouping known as paraphyletic; however, in the broader sense based on cladistics, apes (Hominoidea) are also included, making the terms monkeys and simians synonyms in regards to their scope.

Hsanotherium is an extinct genus of early ungulate from the middle Eocene, described in 2000 in the Pondaung Formation, Myanmar.

Anthracokeryx is a genus of extinct artiodactyl ungulate mammal belonging to Anthracotheriidae that lived in Asia during the middle to late Eocene.

Eosimiidae Family of primates that are possibly extinct

Eosimiidae is the possible family of extinct primates believed to be the earliest simians.

Altiatlasius is an extinct genus of mammal, which may have been the oldest known primate, dating to the Late Paleocene from Morocco. The only species, Altiatlasius koulchii, was described in 1990.

Ganlea is a fossil primate from central Myanmar, formerly known as Burma. Its age is about 38 million years, living during the late Eocene epoch. Ganlea belongs to the group of anthropoids, and is in the family Amphipithecidae. It is older than any other known anthropoid from Africa, and is the second oldest known from Asia. Its remains consist of teeth and jawbones belonging to 10 to 15 individuals found near the city of Bagan in the central part of the country.

Karanisia is an extinct genus of strepsirrhine primate from middle Eocene deposits in Egypt.

Algeripithecus is an extinct genus of early fossil primate, weighing approximately 65 to 85 grams. Fossils have been found in Algeria dating from 50 to 46 million years ago.

<i>Ekgmowechashala</i> Extinct genus of primates

Ekgmowechashala is an extinct genus of primate belonging to Adapiformes.

Dermotherium is a genus of fossil mammals closely related to the living colugos, a small group of gliding mammals from Southeast Asia. Two species are recognized: D. major from the Late Eocene of Thailand, based on a single fragment of the lower jaw, and D. chimaera from the Late Oligocene of Thailand, known from three fragments of the lower jaw and two isolated upper molars. In addition, a single isolated upper molar from the Early Oligocene of Pakistan has been tentatively assigned to D. chimaera. All sites where fossils of Dermotherium have been found were probably forested environments and the fossil species were probably forest dwellers like living colugos, but whether they had the gliding adaptations of the living species is unknown.

<i>Khoratpithecus</i> Extinct genus of primates

Khoratpithecus is an extinct genus of pongin primates that lived during the late Miocene in Myanmar and Thailand.

Djebelemur is an extinct genus of early strepsirrhine primate from the late early or early middle Eocene period from the Chambi locality in Tunisia. Although they probably lacked a toothcomb, a specialized dental structure found in living lemuriforms, they are thought to be a related stem group. The one recognized species, Djebelemur martinezi, was very small, approximately 100 g (3.5 oz).

<i>Afrasia djijidae</i> Eocene fossil primate from Myanmar

Afrasia djijidae is a fossil primate that lived in Myanmar approximately 37 million years ago, during the late middle Eocene. The only species in the genus Afrasia, it was a small primate, estimated to weigh around 100 grams (3.5 oz). Despite the significant geographic distance between them, Afrasia is thought to be closely related to Afrotarsius, an enigmatic fossil found in Libya and Egypt that dates to 38–39 million years ago. If this relationship is correct, it suggests that early simians dispersed from Asia to Africa during the middle Eocene and would add further support to the hypothesis that the first simians evolved in Asia, not Africa. Neither Afrasia nor Afrotarsius, which together form the family Afrotarsiidae, is considered ancestral to living simians, but they are part of a side branch or stem group known as eosimiiforms. Because they did not give rise to the stem simians that are known from the same deposits in Africa, early Asian simians are thought to have dispersed from Asia to Africa more than once prior to the late middle Eocene. Such dispersals from Asia to Africa also were seen around the same time in other mammalian groups, including hystricognathous rodents and anthracotheres.

<i>Afrotarsius</i> Extinct genus of primates

Afrotarsius is a primate found in the Paleogene of Africa.

This paleomammalogy list records new fossil mammal taxa that were described during the year 2012, as well as notes other significant paleomammalogy discoveries and events which occurred during that year.

<i>Amphipithecus</i> Extinct genus of primates

Amphipithecus mogaungensis was a primate that lived in Late Eocene Myanmar. Along with another primate Pondaungia cotteri, both are difficult to categorise within the order Primates. What little is known suggests that they are neither adapiform nor omomyid primates, two of the earliest primate groups to appear in the fossil record. Deep mandibles and mandibular molars with low, broad crowns suggest they are both simians, a group that includes monkeys, apes, and humans, though more material is needed for further comparison. The teeth also suggest that these were frugivore primates, with a body mass of 6–10 kg (13–22 lb).

This paleomammalogy list records new fossil mammal taxa that were described during the year 2009, as well as notes other significant paleomammalogy discoveries and events which occurred during that year.

Phileosimias is an extinct genus of primates with two species, P. kamli and P. bahuiorum, that are believed to be amongst the early simians.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Beard, K. Christopher; Marivaux, Laurent (July 2009). "A new primate from the Eocene Pondaung Formation of Myanmar and the monophyly of Burmese amphipithecids". Proceedings of the Royal Society B . 276 (1671): 3285–3294. doi:10.1098/rspb.2009.0836. PMC   2817178 . PMID   19570790.
  2. 1 2 Kay, RF; Schmitt, D (January 2004). "The paleobiology of Amphipithecidae, South Asian late Eocene primates". Journal of Human Evolution. 46 (1): 3–25. doi:10.1016/j.jhevol.2003.09.009. PMID   14698683.
  3. ↑ Chaimanee, Y.; Thein, T.; Ducrocq, S.; Soe, A. N.; Benammi, M.; Tun, T.; Lwin, T.; Wai, S.; Jaeger, J.-J. (2000). "A lower jaw of Pondaungia cotteri from the Late Middle Eocene Pondaung Formation (Myanmar) confirms its anthropoid status". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 97 (8): 4102–4105. Bibcode:2000PNAS...97.4102C. doi: 10.1073/pnas.97.8.4102 . PMC   18163 . PMID   10760279.
  4. ↑ Marivaux, L.; Chaimanee, Y.; Ducrocq, S.; Marandat, B.; Sudre, J.; Soe, A. N.; Tun, S. T.; Htoon, W.; Jaeger, J.-J. (2003). "The anthropoid status of a primate from the late middle Eocene Pondaung Formation (Central Myanmar): Tarsal evidence". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 100 (23): 13173–13178. Bibcode:2003PNAS..10013173M. doi: 10.1073/pnas.2332542100 . PMC   263736 . PMID   14595009.
  5. 1 2 Jaeger, Jean-Jacques; Chaimanee, Yaowalak; Tafforeau, Paul; Ducrocq, Stéphane; Soe, Aung Naing; Marivaux, Laurent; Sudre, Jean; Tun, Soe Thura; Htoon, Wanna; Marandat, Bernard (2004). "Systematics and paleobiology of the anthropoid primate Pondaungia from the late Middle Eocene of Myanmar". Comptes Rendus Palevol. 3 (4): 243–255. doi:10.1016/j.crpv.2004.05.003.
  6. ↑ Beard, K. Christopher; Marivaux, Laurent; Tun, Soe Thura; Soe, Aung Naing; Chaimanee, Yaowalak; Htoon, Wanna; Marandat, Bernard; Aung, Htun Htun; Jaeger, Jean-Jacques (2007). "New sivaladapid primates from the Eocene Pondaung Formation of Myanmar and the anthropoid status of Amphipithecidae". Bulletin of Carnegie Museum of Natural History. 39: 67. doi:10.2992/0145-9058(2007)39[67:NSPFTE]2.0.CO;2. ISSN   0145-9058. S2CID   85730138.
  7. ↑ Bajpai, S.; Kay, R. F.; Williams, B. A.; Das, D. P.; Kapur, V. V.; Tiwari, B. N. (2008). "The oldest Asian record of Anthropoidea". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 105 (32): 11093–11098. Bibcode:2008PNAS..10511093B. doi: 10.1073/pnas.0804159105 . PMC   2516236 . PMID   18685095.
  8. ↑ Rose, Kenneth D.; Rana, Rajendra S.; Sahni, Ashok; Kumar, Kishor; Missiaen, Pieter; Singh, Lachham; Smith, Thierry (2009). "Early Eocene primates from Gujarat, India". Journal of Human Evolution. 56 (4): 366–404. doi:10.1016/j.jhevol.2009.01.008. PMID   19303624.
  9. 1 2 Marivaux, Laurent; Antoine, Pierre-Olivier; Baqri, Rafiqul Hassan Syed; Benammi, Mouloud; Chaimaneet, Yaowalak; Crochet, Jean-Yves; de Franceschi, Dario; Iqbal, Nayyer; Jaeger, Jean-Jacques; Metais††, Gregoire; Roohi, Ghazala; Welcomme, Jean-Loup (June 2005). "Anthropoid primates from the Oligocene of Pakistan (Bugti Hills): Data on early anthropoid evolution and biogeography". PNAS . 102 (24): 8436–41. Bibcode:2005PNAS..102.8436M. doi: 10.1073/pnas.0503469102 . PMC   1150860 . PMID   15937103.
  10. ↑ Ciochon, R. L.; Gunnell, G. F. (2004). "Eocene large-bodied primates of Myanmar and Thailand: morphological considerations and phylogenetic affinities". In Ross, C. F.; Kay, R. F. (eds.). Anthropoid origins: new visions. New York, NY: Kluwer. pp. 249–282. ISBN   9781461347002.
  11. ↑ Ciochon, R. L. (1985). "Fossil ancestors of Burma". Natural History. 94 (10): 26.
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