This guide will help you to study for the exam by emphasizing key concepts concerning the various ways the forces of evolution can be applied to the living primates and to the primate fossil primate record. For each of the following terms and concepts that we have discussed, you should be able to:

1.  know primate species names and their social organizations and how selection acts on their anatomies and their behaviors
2.provide fossil evidence to show how a particular species can be argued to be a common ancestor of the various primate families
3.know approximate dating ranges (ie., which epoch?) for when a particular fossil primate species existed
4.know the arguments for which fossil hominid is the likely ancestor of Homo

Concepts and Terms
Modern Human Variation
polymorphism
balanced - sickle cell anemia
geographic "races"
clinal distribution of traits
adaptiveness of physical traits
anatomical
physiological
blood groups - A, B, O & AB
universal donor vs. acceptor
co-dominance

Primatology
Ancestral Mammalian traits
Derived Primate traits
Prosimians
solitary social org
nocturnal
diurnal
crepuscular
  lemurs
  lorises
  tarsiers
 Monkeys
  New World
   prehensile tails
   spider monkey
   marmosets and tamarins
        polyandry
  Old World
   baboons
   savanna vs. desert social orgs.
        one-male harems vs. multi-male/female troops
   macaques
   colobus - leaf eaters
   langurs
 Apes
  Lesser
   Gibbons
   Siamangs
  Greater
   Orangutans
   Gorillas
   Chimpanzees
 Primate Behavior
  Social Group Dynamics
   display
   grooming
   presenting
   monogamy
   solitary
   alpha male
   harem
   troop
  Jane Goodall & Chimpanzees
   strong mother-infant bond
   tool making & use
   meat eating/hunting
   murder/infanticide
  Bonobo Chimpanzees
   sex to relieve aggression
   alpha females
   West African Tai Forest Chimps
        nut cracking
        group hunting of colubus monkeys
Reader Chapters  on chimp hunting, cultures
Fossil Record
fossilization
discovery
relative dating methods
    geological stratigraphy
    biostratigraphy  
absolute dating
    potassium-argon
    radiocarbon
Fossil Primate Evolution
Paleocene (65-54 mya)
Plesiadapis
proto-prosimian
Eocene (54-36 mya)
true prosimians
Adapids - Adapis and Notharctus
    related to lemurs and lorises
Omomyids - Necrolemur
     tarsier-like
    Eosimias - mini monkey

Oligocene (36-23 mya)
age of anthropoids
Apidium
possible ancestor of Old/New World monkeys
4 molar cusp pattern
Aegyptopithecus
 dental ape
    possible ancestor of hominoids
    Y-5 molar cusp pattern
Miocene (23-5 mya)
Age of Hominoids
Early Miocene (23-17 mya)
tropical rain forest expands
20 species of Dryopithecines
Dryopithecus, Proconsul
possible ancestor of chimp
Late Miocene (17- 5 mya)
Great Dessication (cold/dry)
shrinkage of rain forests
extinction of most species of Dryopithecines
Sivapithecines
open woodland niche
ground dwelling
larger molars
thick tooth enamel
Sivapithecus (15 - 8 mya)
orangutan ancestor
Ramapithecus (15 - 8 mya)
small bodied ape
Gigantopithecus (8 mya - 500,000 ya)
twice as large as gorilla
 
Possible earliest hominid 6-7 mya
Sahelanthropus chadensis - Toumai
    short flat face
    oval shape to foramen magnum
    thick enamel on molars

Pliocene (5 - 1.8 mya)
Age of Hominids
Theories for Bipedalism

Ardipithecus ramidus (4.5 - 4.3 mya)
possibly earliest hominid ancestor
Australopithecines (4.1 - 1 mya)
Australopithecus anamensis (3.9-4.1 mya)
woodland adapted bipeds

Australopithecus afarensis (4-3 mya)
savanna adapted bipeds
Lucy
First Family Site 333
cranial capacity 300-400cc
Hadar/Laetoli sites

Kenyanthropus platyops (3.5 mya)
    flat faced hominid like Toumai

Australopithecus africanus
(3-2 mya)
South Africa
Dart's Taung child
cranial capacity 400-500 cc
Sterkfontein site
limestone cave

Paranthropus aethiopicus
(2.5 - 2 mya)
"Black Skull"
robust ancestor transitional between afarensis and boisei

Paranthropus robustus
(2-1 mya)
South Africa
Swartkrans site
very large molars
cranial capacity 450-550 cc
seed/nut econiche

Paranthropus boisei
(2-1 mya)
East Africa
Olduvai Gorge
similar to P. Robustus

Australopithecus garhi (2.5 mya)
use of stone tools? based on stone tool cut marks
More human body proportions

Homo habilis/rudolfensis (2.4-1.6 mya)
East and South Africa
Olduvai Gorge
Sterkfontein
Swartkrans
stone tool using
econiche shift to hunting/scavenging for meat
seasonality and meat eating
cranial capacity 600-800 cc
more frontal lobe development
foresight, planning, decision making
survival advantages to meat eating and food sharing