Krystal Morrice
Anthropology Week 4
Blog Post
25 February 2013
: Lemurs:
a. Lemur is a “forest creature”. They are mostly
found on the Madagascar islands, which are located off the coast of Africa. That
is why they are called a forest creature, being that they mostly live in a tropical
forest. However, sometimes they are known to build habitat in a more dry forest.
Either way, Lemurs are known to be herbivores and are built with the strength
to climb tree and jump from one place to another.
Madagascar lies in the Indian Ocean off
the southeast coast of Africa opposite Mozambique. The world's fourth-largest
island, it is twice the size of Arizona. The country's low-lying coastal area
gives way to a central plateau. The once densely wooded interior has largely
been cut down (http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0107743.html).
Researchers have reported that almost
all species of Lemurs are close to becoming extinct. The arrival of homo-sapiens
has endangered Lemurs and their habitat.
b. The lemur dentition
is heterodont,
which means having multiple tooth morphologies. This derives from an ancestral
primate permanent dentition of 
.
There are also noticeable differences in dental morphology and tooth topography
between lemurs. Indri,
a type of Lemur, has teeth that are perfectly adapted for shearing leaves and
crushing seeds. In the toothcomb of most lemurs, the bottom incisors
and canine teeth
are procumbent, which face forward rather than up and are finely spaced;
provide a tool for grooming or feeding. Lemurs are also dentally precocious
at birth, and have their full permanent dentition at weaning.
For instance, indri use their toothcomb not only for grooming, but also to pry
out the large seeds from Beilschmiedia fruits,
while fork-marked lemurs use their relatively long
toothcomb to cut through tree bark to induce the flow of tree sap
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lemur#Dentition). As you
can see these animals have different characteristics to help them in the
environment they live, which brings me to the next question; how the primate’s trait
expression has been influenced by their environment.
.
There are also noticeable differences in dental morphology and tooth topography
between lemurs. Indri,
a type of Lemur, has teeth that are perfectly adapted for shearing leaves and
crushing seeds. In the toothcomb of most lemurs, the bottom incisors
and canine teeth
are procumbent, which face forward rather than up and are finely spaced;
provide a tool for grooming or feeding. Lemurs are also dentally precocious
at birth, and have their full permanent dentition at weaning.
For instance, indri use their toothcomb not only for grooming, but also to pry
out the large seeds from Beilschmiedia fruits,
while fork-marked lemurs use their relatively long
toothcomb to cut through tree bark to induce the flow of tree sap
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lemur#Dentition). As you
can see these animals have different characteristics to help them in the
environment they live, which brings me to the next question; how the primate’s trait
expression has been influenced by their environment.
c. Like I
discussed in bullet point B, different species of Lemurs have different types
of dentition patterns; each useful for a different skill or task. The tooth
comb in each species of Lemur differs and is useful in the environment that
they live in. I.E) Indri Lemurs tooth comb allows them to pry out large seeds
from the fruit that they have to eat, while fork-marked Lemurs’ toothcomb has
adapted to be sharper and longer than most in order to cut through tree bark to
get to sap.
Spider
Monkey:
a. Similar
to some Lemurs, Spider Monkeys also live in tropical climates, except instead of building
its habitat on the Madagascar Islands, they specifically are found in the evergreen
forests of Central and South America, as well as, being found as far north as
Mexico. Spider Monkeys are arboreal, meaning they are inhabits in trees. They
thrive in the upper canopy, which allows these primates to hunt with ease and
without the competition of other types of primates (http://www.macalester.edu/~montgomery/spidermonkey.html).
b.
Spider
Monkeys usually have a small face with a blunt snout. Just like the dentition
pattern of a lemur, some spider monkeys have the dentition pattern of: 2 incisors,
1 canine, 3 premolars, and 3 premolars. In the upper dental arcade
of a spider monkey the molars set farther apart than the
canines. The lower dental
arcade is more U-shaped, with the cheek teeth rows set closer together and running more parallel to one another.
The Incisor teeth of the spider money are usually the more notable dentition
feature. Upper and lower incisors are relatively wide and high-crowned.
Researchers also show that male and female spider monkeys have different
dentition patterns. (http://www.academia.edu/392092/Morphology_and_evolution_of_the_Spider_Monkey_Genus._Ateles).
c. Spider
Monkeys live in tropical forests and they are fruit eaters. They use their
incisors to pick fruit off the trees. “Dental
micro-wear studies of Ateles show a scratch-dominated pattern related to the consumption
of seeds and pulp of mature fleshy fruits (Kay,1987) (http://www.academia.edu/392092/Morphology_and_evolution_of_the_Spider_Monkey_Genus._Ateles).
Baboon:
a.
Baboons
are known to be one of the most adaptable and flexible primates on earth. They
are able to adapt to most any environment and occupy an array of different
habitats across Africa and the Arabian
Peninsula.
Baboons are omnivorous, which means
they will eat almost anything and will change their diets as the environment
around them changes. Even
though baboons move and adapt to any environment that they are in, they are
said to usually sleep in trees, on cliffs, in caves, or under rocky overhangs.
b. Old world
moneys, such as the baboon, share this 2.1.2.3 dental formula. All baboons have a snout-like face,
the same dentition with long, sharp canine teeth, and powerful jaws.
c.
Since
baboons have to adapt to their environments, food sources and all, they eat both plant
and animal materials. Which
is one of the reasons that their teeth are so sharp, long, and strong. Having
to break through harder tougher food items has adapted their teeth to be able
to function in most any environment.
Gibbon:
a.
The gibbon
is a small sized ape, which is found mostly in the dense jungles and tropical rainforests
across south-east Asia. The Gibbon monkey is classified as an arboreal, meaning
that they spend most of their lives in trees.
b.
The dental
formula in hominoids is the same as in all other catarrhine primates: 2.1.2.3 /
2.1.2.3. The generalized formula for Old World
monkeys and apes.
The dental arcade is U-shaped, and the mandible
is thin and light. The incisors are broad and flat, while the molars have
low, rounded cusps with thick enamel.
The most noticeable characteristic of the dentition of Hylobates, Gibbon, is the presence of large, dagger-like canines
in both the upper and lower jaw. These canines are not sexually dimorphic. (http://www.gibbons.de/main/introduction/chapter_english01.html).
c.
Gibbons are
omnivorous animals, similar to the baboon, meaning that they eat a mixture of
both plant and animal matter. The main food of the gibbon is ripe fruit which
grow around them in the trees, but they also eat insects, birds, small spiders,
eggs, and reptiles. Just like with the previous primates, what they eat
reflects their dentition patters. Like stated in letter B bullet point, Gibbons
have large dagger like canines. These canines are useful to the canines for
eating the fruit, as well as the other food items they eat. Were they always
like this? Or did they adapt to the environment that they lived in? It is a
definite possibility; however, most research states that the generalized formulas
for all old world monkeys are the same. This is probably because they eat
similar food, but it also could just be a genetic dentition patter in these
types of primates.
Chimpanzee:
a.
Chimpanzees
can be found Central and Western Africa. They range from Senegal to Tanzania
and are usually found along the river Zaire. They like to live in humid and
deciduous rainforests. They also like swamplands, grasslands and woodlands (http://www.iearn.org.au/greatapes/chimps.htm).
b.
I found some interesting facts
about Chimpanzee dental patterns and the evolution of their dentition patterns.
A revised dental growth chronology for chimpanzees
is similar to estimated timing of Homo erectus
and therefore has implications for interpreting life history in hominins. The
sequence and timing of dental emergence correlate with life history events in
catarrhine primates, which include Old World monkeys, apes, and modern humans (http://www.pnas.org/content/101/29/10541.full).
The first permanent molar is informative
for comparing chimpanzee life history because its full eruption relates with the
end of infancy and completion of the brain growth in species studied so far. The
molar eruption also provides a measure for comparing chimpanzees, modern humans,
and fossil hominins.
c. Like I stated above, chimpanzee’s dentition
patterns have changed over the years through evolution. I believe that environment
has a huge influence in all primates changes throughout the years, whether it
is dentition patterns, diets, or even the way they walk.
Works
Cited
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Baboons - Physical Characteristics, Social Behavior, Baboon Friendships,
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