A. Lemurs (Promisian) are found exclusively on the island of Madagascar and the Comoro Islands, where they were most likely brought by human travelers. Here, they don’t have to contend with other, more developed primates. Their habitats range from rainforests to very hot and dry regions. Their diets consist of a mix of fruit, leaves, and small prey such as frogs, eggs, and hatched birds.
Spider monkeys (New World Monkey) reside in the tropical forests of Central and South America, specifically in the upper layers of the rainforests. They are one of the largest types of New World monkeys. Their diet consists mostly of fruits and nuts, but they will occasionally eat insects, bird eggs, and honey when food is not easy to come by.
Baboons (Old World Monkey) live in several, varied regions of Africa, ranging from savanna grasslands to tropical rainforests. Although they do climb trees to sleep and find food, most of their time is spent on the ground. Their diet includes fruit, grasses, and roots, as well as birds, rodents, and even larger prey like antelopes or sheep.
Gibbons (Lesser pe) are found in Northeastern India, Southern China, and Borneo, in tropical rainforests. They rarely descend to the ground, spending most of their lives in the trees, where they find most of their food. Gibbons eat mostly fruits--figs, especially--but will sometimes consume leaves and insects.
Chimpanzees (Great ape), who are the closest living relatives of humans, reside in the African rainforests, woodlands, and grasslands. They are very social animals, living in groups of several dozen. Most of their eating and sleeping is done in the trees. Their diet is mainly vegetarian, yet includes insects, carrion, and eggs. Occasionally, they will eat other primates, and even other chimpanzees.
B. What these primates have in common is that they are all heterodont, meaning they possess several kinds of teeth in the tooth row. Each of these primates have a combination of incisors, canines, pre-molars, and molars. This trait sets them apart from other mammals, who typically have a less varied collection of teeth.
C. This shared trait can be attributed to these primates being omnivorous. Their diet is less specialized; it does not focus on only meat or vegetables, but both. Therefore, their teeth must be suited for biting and chewing a wide variety of foods.
D.
Bottom teeth of a lemur. Notice how the front teeth protrude
outward much more than any of the other listed primates.
A spider monkey. This primate's teeth seem to be grouped much
closer to each other than the lemur's.
A baboon. This primate has the largest canines of the five.
A gibbon.
A chimpanzee. Compared to the rest of its teeth, the chimpanzee
seems to have the shortest canines. Its jaw is also shorter.
Good thorough description of each primate's environment and their diet. Good images as well.
ReplyDeleteThe guidelines ask that you provide for *each* of the five primates (b) A description of your specified character trait for that primate and (c) A discussion on how the primate’s trait expression has been influenced by its environment, i.e., how can the trait be viewed as an adaptation to the primate’s environment.
You have discussed primates as whole for parts (b) and (c), which only highlights their similarities. We are interested in how they are different in their dentition and how those differences are influenced by the differences in their environment. That is why they needed to be discussed individually.
Missing summary (#4) as well?
Professor:
ReplyDeleteThanks for pointing out the missing summary. I was keeping it in a separate document and forgot to paste it into the blog. Although it's overdue, I'll post it:
My findings indicate that the structure and patterns of these primates’ teeth are best suited to the foods they find where they spend most of their time: baboons, who are mostly on the ground, have very sharp teeth and long jaws, which are convenient for hunting and eating prey such as antelope. Gibbons, who are mostly found in trees, rely mostly on fruits and insects for food, and while some of their front teeth are very long and sharp, the rest are small and blunt.
However, while they also assist in hunting prey and tearing food, I believe the elongated canines also serve as weapons for the primates. Even the primates whose diets don’t include larger prey (the gibbon, for example) have canines which are much longer and sharper than the rest of their teeth. When threatened, the primates can use these teeth to attack other animals.
Good summary. Thank you for the response.
ReplyDeleteMaria,
ReplyDeleteI like how you went into detail in your summary regarding these primates teeth. I agree with your point that the elongated canines also serve as weapons.