Primates

Question 0

Primate Ecology

Answer 0

study of the interrelationships between animals, plants and the physical enviroment.

• environment influences natural selection,
• primate behaviour evolved in response to environmental pressures

Question 1

List the shared features of the Hominoids: gibbons, orangutans, gorillas, chimpanzees, bonobos

Answer 1

• increased brain volume and intelligence
• increased complexity of social interactions
• large body size
• brachiation
• knuckle-walking/fist-walking
• no tails

Question 2

Types of diet and feeding: Diurnal

Answer 2

forage during the day

Question 3

Types of diet and feeding: Nocturnal

Answer 3

forage at night

Question 4

Types of diet and feeding: Crepuscular

Answer 4

forage at dawn and dusk

Question 5

Types of diet and feeding: Cathemeral

Answer 5

irregular periods during both day and night

Question 6

Diet and feeding competition: Intragroup feeding competition

Answer 6

competition between members of a group

Question 7

Diet and feeding competition: Intergroup competition

Answer 7

competition between the best two groups

Question 8

Diet and feeding competition: Contest feeding competition

Answer 8

competition for the best foods either intra- or intergroup

Question 9

Diet and feeding competition: Scramble feeding competition

Answer 9

competition for more than others, intragroup

Question 10

Effects of feeding competition?

Answer 10

• poor health
• lower dominance rank
• lowered fertility

In times of food shortages, natural selection may favour best foragers & food competitors

Question 11

Territories & Ranges: Home ranges

Answer 11

• vary greatly in size
• must contain water, food, shelter, mates
• may overlap, slightly or entirely

Question 12

Territories & Ranges: Core area

Answer 12

-parts of home range that is most intensively used

Question 13

Territories & ranges: Territory

Answer 13

-part of a home range that is defended against other members of the same species

Question 14

Niche seperation

Answer 14

-2 or more species that share the same space will somehow diverge in dietary needs in lean times

Question 15

Polyspecific groups

Answer 15

• groups of 2 or more species will travel and forage for food together
• good anti-predator strategy
• low to no feeding competition due to niche seperation

Question 16

Metatheria

Answer 16

-marsupials, offspring born early and move into pouch

Question 17

prototheria

Answer 17

-monotremes, lay eggs but nurse young like other mammals

Question 18

Eutheria

Answer 18

• placental mammals

- primates

Question 19

What are the two suborders of primates?

Answer 19

Strepsirhini- lemurs and lorises

Haplorhini- tarsiers, monkeys, apes, humans

Question 20

All nonhuman primates are quadrupeds. What is a quadruped?

Answer 20

An animal that has four feet

Question 21

Anatomical traits of primates

Answer 21

• grasping hands with opposable thumbs or big toes
• flattened nails
• forward-facing eyes, stereoscopic vision (depth perception)

Question 22

What are the 2 hypothesis for the adaptation of grasping hands and stereoscopic vission?

Answer 22

Arboreal hypothesis- adaptation for life in trees

Visual predation hypothesis- adaptation for catching small prey

Question 23

Explain the reason for a primates extended ontogeny (life span)?

Answer 23

Primates have much more the learn than other mammals

ex// learning how to live in a social group is a long process

Question 24

Most primate are diurnal, define diurnal

Answer 24

active during the day