1
Q
What is a quadrumanual?
A
Having four hands or using all four limbs for grasping and manipulation
2
Q
What is brachiation?
A
A form of arm-swinging locomotion in which an animal moves hand-over-hand through the trees
3
Q
What are the main two brachiating animals?
A
Gibbons and siamangs
4
Q
Which two primates are knuckle-walkers?
A
Chimpanzees and gorillas
5
Q
What is semi-quadrupedal?
A
Animals that move primarily on all fours but may also use bipedal postures or climbing behaviors occasionally
6
Q
What are four functional traits resulting from bipedalism?
A
S-shaped spine, short broad pelvis, angled femur, and non-opposable big toe
7
Q
What is a sacculated stomach?
A
A multi-chambered or pouch-like stomach used to ferment and digest fibrous plant material; allows bacterial fermentation of cellulose which is an adaptation for a folivorous (leaf-heavy diet)
8
Q
What is idiosyncratic variation?
A
Individual variation unique to a single organism
9
Q
What is sexual variation?
A
Differences between males and females of the same species (sexual dimorphism)
10
Q
What are ossification centers?
A
Regions in developing bones where bojne tissue first forms; bones grow outward from these centers during development
11
Q
What is the shoulder girdle?
A
Clavicle and scapula; connects arms to the trunk, allowing a wide range of arm motion
12
Q
What are sutures?
A
Immovable joints between skull bones that fuse with age
13
Q
What is articulation?
A
A joint where two bones meet and move relative to one another
14
Q
What is a homodont?
A
All teeth are the same and generally pointed
15
Q
How are homodontic teeth structures useful?
A
They function well in grasping prey and holding it until it dies
16
Q
What animal are homodonts primarily?
A
Reptiles
17
Q
What is a heterodont?
A
Having teeth of different shapes
18
Q
Explain the function of incisors
A
Cutting
19
Q
Explain the function of canines
A
Puncturing and holding + weapons for intrasexual competition and defense especialy in males who often have larger canines than females
20
Q
Explain the function of premolars
A
Puncturing and crushing
21
Q
Explain the function of molars
A
Crushing and grinding
22
Q
What is a bunodont?
A
Rounded-cusp molars adapted for crushing
23
Q
What is a bilophodont?
A
Molars with two ridges
24
Q
What is a C/P3 honing complex?
A
The canine sharpens against the first lower premolar coupled with diastemas and elongated enamel cap to sharpen canines; found in apes but reduced in humans due to reduced male-male aggression and the increased use of tools
25
What is the sectorial premolar?
The lower first premolar that acts as a sharpening surface for the upper canine
26
What is the diastema?
A gap between teeth (often between canine and incisor) to accommodate large opposing canines
27
What is the occlusal?
Refers to the chewing surface of a tooth
28
What is the difference between enamel and dentine?
Enamel is the hard, outer tooth layer; dentine is the softer, inner layer beneath it
29
What is the difference between deciduous and adult teeth?
Deciduous is baby or milk teeth and adult teeth is the permanent set replacing them
30
What is mastication?
The process of chewing food
31
What is the temporalis m.?
Large muscle on the side of the skull which elevates and retracts mandible (chewing)
32
What is the masseter m.?
Muscle at jaw angle; elevates mandible (closes jaw)
33
What is the medial pterygoid m.?
Muscle inside jaw; assists in side-to-side grinding movements
34
What is taphonomy?
The study of what happens to organisms after death until discovery as fossils (decay, burial, preservation)
35
Neontological vs Paleontological
Neontological is the study of living organisms and paleontological is the study of ancient, fossil organisms
36
What is Steno/Principle of Superposition?
In undisturbed strata, older layers lie beneath younger ones
37
Who is Thomas Burnet?
Early (17th century) thinker who attempted to explain Earth's formation via Biblical framework; precursor to natural geological thought
38
Study of stratigraphy
The study of rock layers (strata) and their chronological relationship
39
Strata
Layers of sedimentary rock or soil
40
William Smith/Principle of Faunal Succession
Fossil species succeed each other in a recognizable order; allows strata correlation across regions
41
Lithostratigraphy
Dating and correlating layers based on rock type and composition
42
Relative dating
Determines whether something is older or younger than something else
42
Biostratigraphy
Dating layers based on fossil content (faunal correlation)
43
List three ways to do relative dating
Steno's law, biostratigraphy, lithostratigraphy
44
Absolute dating
Determines age in years using radioactive decay
45
Half-life
Time required for half the radioactive isotope in a sample to decay
46
Carbon-14 dating
Measures decay of Carbon-14 in organic remains; effective up to 50k years
47
Potassium-Argon dating
Measures ratio of ⁴⁰K to ⁴⁰Ar in volcanic rock; useful for fossils 100,000+ years old
48
Argon-Argon dating
More precise version of K-Ar dating
49
Fission-Track dating
Counts microscopic damage trails from uranium decay; used on volcanic grass and minerals
50
Electron Spin Resonance
Measures trapped electron charge in tooth enamel or minerals; useful 10k-several million years
51
Paleomagnetic dating
Uses record of Earth's magnetic reversals preserved in rocks to estimate age
52
Paleodemography
Study of ancient population structures
53
Paleopathology
Study of ancient disease and injury in fossil or skeletal remains
54
Grand Coupure
A Major extinct about 34 million years ago marking the Eocene-Oligocene boundary, leading to widespread extinction of many Europeans (especially Adapoids and Omomyoids) due to global cooling and habitat change
55
Faunal exchange
The migration and mixing of animal species between continents as land connections form
56
Indo-Pakistan signifance
Region critical to Miocene ape evolution (Sivapithecus, Ramapithecus)
57
Tethys Sea
Ancient ocean separating Africa and Eurasia before the continents collided; its closing enabled faunal exchange and ape migration into Eurasia
58
Ramapithecus
Once thought human ancestor; later shown to be female Sivapithecus
59
Sahelanthropus tchadensis
Oldest known hominin candidate; small canines, anterior foramen magnum (bipedal hint)
60
Orrorin tugenesis
"Millenium Man"; femur suggests habitual bipedality
61
Ardipithecus ramidus
Early hominin with grasping big toe but bipedal pelvis; arboreal and terrestrial mix
62
Pilbeam and Simons
1960s–70s paleoanthropologists who described many primates and Miocene apes; important for early hominoid systematics
63
Sarich and Wilson
1967 biochemists who pioneered molecular clock dating, estimating human–ape divergence at ~5 mya (much later than fossil guesses)
64
Owen Lovejoy
Anthropologist who studied bipedalism and reproductive behavior in early hominins (e.g., Ardipithecus); emphasized pair-bonding and provisioning hypotheses
65
"K" vs "r" reproduction
K-selected species: Few offspring, long maturation, high parental investment (apes, humans)
r-selected species: Many offspring, little investment, fast reproduction (monkeys, rodents)
66
Immunological distance
Degrees of genetic relatedness measured by antibody-antigen reactions; used by Sarich & Wilson to infer evolutionary relationships
67
Molecular clock
Hypothesis that genetic mutations accumulate at a roughly constant rate, allowing estimation of divergence times between species
68
Chororapithecus abyssinicus
Possible early gorilla ancestor based on tooth morphology
69
Nakalipithecus
Early African ape showing links to later hominins; possibly ancestral to gorrillas/humans
70
Lomonrupithecus
Rarely referenced Miocene ape genus from Africa; possibly related to early hominoid radiation
71
What are three species that are the earliest primates or proto-primates in the Paleocene?
Plesiadapis, Purgatorius, Plesiadapaforms
72
What are Eocene lemur/loris-like creatures?
Adapids, Adapis, Notharcus
73
What are Eocene tarsier-like creatures?
Omomyoids, Necrolemur
74
What are Eocene earliest anthropoids/monkey-ape like?
Eosimus, Catopithecus
75
What are Oligocene potential ancestors for all NWM/OWM/Apes?
Apidium, Parapithecus
76
What are Early Miocene potential ancestors for all OWM/Apes?
Aegyptopithecus, Propliopithecus
77
What are Middle Miocene potential ancestors for OWM?
Victoriapithecus
78
What are Middle Miocene potential ancestors apes but are ape head monkey body?
Proconsul, Kenyapithecus, Morotopithecus
79
What is a weird big ape?
Gigantopithecus
80
What are potential ancestors for Pongo (orangutans)?
Sivapithecus
81
What are potential ancestors for African apes (Pan = chimps + gorillas)?
Lufengpithecus, Ouranopothecus
82
What is a potential ancestor for Gorilla?
Choropithecus
83
Discuss the impact of continental drift, plate tectonics, changes in global climate, and mass extinction events on the development and geographic distribution of primates. Be sure to include relevant primate groups in your discussion.
a. The breakup of Pangaea and later Gondwana isolated populations, creating new ecological niches. For example, when Africa and South America separated, primate ancestors evolved only on the African side, leading to prosimian diversification there. Later, some primates rafted to South America, giving rise to New World monkeys (Plattyrhines).
b. Global cooling after the Eocene replaced tropical forests with patchy woodlands and grasslands. This caused extinction of many Eocene prosimians and promoted adaptive radiations among surviving anthropoids.
c. Although primates arose after the major cretaceous extinction, that event eliminated dinosaurs, opening ecological niches for small mammals—including early primates like Plesiadapiforms—to flourish and diversify.
84
Compare and contrast at least five differences between quadrupedal pongids (e.g. chimpanzees) and bipeds in the skull, knee, pelvis, or foot regions and state what each change means in terms of function.
Foramen Magnum: In the back of skull for pongids; in the base of skull in humans which balances head upright
Pelvis: Long/narrow in pongids and short/broad in humans which stabilizes body on one leg
Knee: straight femur in chimps and angled femur in humans which keeps center of gravity midline
Foot: grasping big toe, flat in pongids vs aligned arched big toe in humans for propulsion & shock absorption
85
Discuss how Old World Monkeys differ from Apes in: (1) reproduction, (2) infant growth and rearing, (3) dentition, and (4) their overall geographic distribution? What do 1 and 2 have to do with the current abundance of monkeys relative to apes?
Reproduction: Monkeys = short gestation, frequent births; Apes = long gestation, low rate
Infant growth: Monkeys mature fast; Apes slow, prolonged care
Dentition: Monkeys have bilophodont molars while apes have Y-5 molars
Geographic range: Monkeys = wide (Africa-Asia, forests & savannas); Apes = limited (tropical forests)
Monkeys reproduce faster and mature sooner, leading to higher populations while apes reproduce slower, leading to fewer, vulnerable species
86
The order of primates consists of which two suborders?
Prosimii and Anthropoidea
87
Explain the difference between Prosimians and Anthropoids
Prosimians tend to have longer snouts, more elaborate sense of smell, smaller brains, more like primitive condition while Anthropoids have shorter faces, highly developed brains, larger brains
88
Prosimii has which three superfamilies
Lemuroidea, Lorisoidea, and Tarsioidea
89
Where is Lemuroidea found?
Madagascar Island
90
Where is Lorisoidea found?
Africa and South Asia
91
Where is Tarsioidea found?
Southeast Asia
92
What features do lemurs and lorises have that tarsiers don't have?
Long snouts, moist noses (wet rhinariums), large ears, dental combs, postorbital bars
93
What are four ways in which Tarsiers are closer to Anthropoids?
Orbits closer to midline of face + they have full bony closure of eye socket, snouts less projected, lack rhinariums, have bony ears
94
What are four features of the suborder Anthropoidea?
Generally larger body size, eyes completely in front of skull with full postorbital closure, all members lack a rhinarium, more complex social organization and more parental care
95
Two infraorders of Anthropoidea?
Platyrrhini (flat nose with nostrils to side) and Catarrhini (long and narrow nose with nostrils to bottom)
96
Difference in dental structure between Platyrrhini and Catarrhini?
Platyrrhini have 2 incisors, 1 canine, 3 premolars, 3 molars while Catarrhini have 2 incisors, 1 canine, 2 premolars, 3 molars
97
What is the one superfamily within Platyrrhini?
Ceboidea (New World Monkeys)
98
What are the two families within Ceboidea?
Callitrichidae (marmosets and tamarins); very small and generally more primitive; some have claws; consistently have twin births
Cebidae (common ones are the spider, owl, and howler monkey)
99
Catarrhini comprises which two superfamilies?
Cercopithecoidea and Hominoidea
100
What is Cercopithecoidea?
Old World Monkeys; more upright sitting posture; tails are not prehensile noses; all have catarrhine noses
101
What does Hominoidea consist of?
Lesser apes, great apes, humans
102
What are the general features of Hominoidea?
2:1:2:3 dental formula with bunodont, Y-5 molar cusp pattern
103
What are the two families within Hominoidea?
Hylobatidae (gibbons and siamangs); found only in Southeast Asia, small body size, and very long arms, little sexual dimorphism
Hominidae (great apes and humans)
104
Within Hominidae, what are the three subfamilies?
Ponginae (Pongo)
Gorillini (has only one genus Gorilla)
Hominini (has two genra, Pan and Homo)
105
What is the one species within Ponginae?
Pongo pygmaeus
106
What is the one genus and species of Gorillinae?
Gorilla gorilla
107
In terms of organic and inorganic components, how are bones formed?
50 percent organic, 25 percent inorganic, and 25 percent water
108
Is depositing or removing bone faster and by how much?
Removing by a factor of 10
109
In the human embryo there are how many centers of ossification and how much does that cut down to by birth? How many bones eventually form?
800 -> 400 -> 206
110
Cranial vs postcranial
Cranial refers to skull while postcranial refers to the rest of the skeleton located below the skull
111
Why do teeth tend to survive?
Because of inorganic portion
112
Distraction osteogenesis
Uses bone growth mechanisms to repair and/or reshape bone
113
By how much do primates have reduced amount of teeth?
NWM retain the 2nd, 3rd, 4th premolars; apes and humans retain the 3rd and 4th premolar
114
What is the Paleozoic time period?
570-225 mya
115
Age of reptiles
300 mya
116
What is the Mesozoic time period?
225-65 mya
117
When did mammals appear?
200 mya
118
Cenozoic
65 mya
119
Holocene
0.01 my
120
Pleistocene
1.8 my
121
Pliocene
5.0 my
122
Miocene
22.5 my
123
Oligocene
37.0 my
124
Eocene
53.0 my
125
Paleocene
65.0 my
XANTHRO1
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