Adapiformes

Skeleton of Notharctus tenebrosus in the American Museum of Natural History

The Adapiformes or Adapoidea are an extinct primate group that was traditionally associated with the wet nose monkey ( Strepsirrhini ). They are among the oldest found so far primates. In body and the size of these animals were similar to today's wet nose monkeys, but they still have a number of primitive features: The dental formula of the earlier representations was still 2-1-4-3 ( per jaw half two incisors, one canine, four premolars and three molars ), which corresponded to a missing incisor still the original mammalian dental formula 3-1-4-3. The incipient development of a large brain and cross- efficient limbs (both typical primate characteristics), however, can already recognize. Based on the teeth you thought that these animals have mainly feeds on leaves. Long hind legs and a powerful tail indicate that they have moved away climbing and jumping in the trees.

The majority of the finds come from the period from the early Eocene to early Oligocene ( about 55 million years ago to 35) from North America and Eurasia. In Europe and North America, they are likely to be extinct in the early Oligocene, in Asia can be found but with the Sivaladapidae a family that has lived still in the middle Miocene ( about 13 million years ago). Between the two periods, however, is a large gap in the fossil record, so that the precise relationships remain unresolved within this partial order as well as between the Adapiformes and today's wet nose monkeys until the emergence of further finds.

The finds made ​​so far are divided into three families:

  • The Notharctidae have lived in the Eocene in North America and Europe. Among the most famous genres include Notharctus and Europolemur and 2009 discovered genus Darwinius.
  • The Adapidae are slightly younger than the Notharctidae, finds are mostly from Europe, from the Middle Eocene to the early Oligocene known. The best known species is Adapis.
  • The Sivaladapidae are occupied from China and India. Besides finds from the Eocene and Early Oligocene, there are species from the middle Miocene, including Sivaladapis.

Since the Adapiformes so are known only from the fossil record, it is not clear whether they represent a monophyletic or paraphyletic group. Under the first assumption, ie that there is a clade, they are commonly associated with the wet nose monkey ( Strepsirrhini ). Thus they were relatives of the lemur ( Lemuriformes ); but not the dry nose monkey ( Haplorhini ), which include the authentics monkeys.

Franzen et al. ( 2009), the genus Darwinius ( handed down by the Fossil ' Ida ' from the Messel Pit ) in the group of Adapoidea and see the lack of tooth comb and the plaster claw as a sign that these primates belong to the dry nose monkeys. In October 2009, a new genus of Adapiformes been described with Afradapis. Eric Seiffert et al., The first describer the Adapiformes placed after a detailed phylogenetic analysis again in the wet nose monkeys, as a sister taxon of the present forms.

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