A. Lemurs inhabit Madagascar and can also be found on the Comoro islands. Madagascar is a sub-tropical island with a wet season. Monsoons bring storms and cyclones to the East and North from December to March. The dry season lasts from April to October. The mountains are warm and thundery from November to April. Most favor sources of food from trees and plants, some specific species of Lemur are omnivorous
B. Lemurs have a dentition trait called a dental comb, which looks like a comb and is made of forward-projecting incisors and canines. They use the dental comb to comb the fur of others.
C. Lemurs are usually found in trees and forests, most are herbivores although, some can eat larvae or even larger organisms such as frogs. Their dental combs have a link between their diet, which consists of small fruits and insects. Lemurs have pointy premolars which help to consume their meal.
Spider Monkey(New World Monkey/Platyrrhini)
A. Spider monkeys can be found in Central and South America in the tropical rain forests. They inhabit most of the upper layer of the rain forests. They are social animals that prefer undisturbed primary rain forests.
B. The diet of Spider Monkeys mostly consists of fruits and nuts. If food sources are scarce, they turn to insects, birds's eggs, tree bark, and even honey.
C. Spider Monkeys are arboreal, or living in trees, their diet above helped to shape the way their teeth are.
Baboon(Old World Monkey/Cercopithecidae)
A. Baboons live in Africa and Arabia. Most prefer semi-arid habitats, but some live in tropical rain forests.
B. Baboons are omnivores and mostly feed on fruits, grasses, seeds, bark, and sometimes have a taste for meat. They will consume birds, rodents, and even Antelopes.
C. Although baboons mostly consume seeds, grasses, and fruits, they have large canine teeth and flat molars because they don't eat meat as much as they do the other.
Gibbon(Lesser Ape/Hylobatidae)
A. Gibbons can be found in tropical and subtropical rain forests from Northeast India to Indonesia, China, Borneo and Java.
B. Gibbons are omnivores and eat fruit, flowers, and tender plant shoots. Spend almost no time on the ground and always look for food in the trees.
C. Like other omnivore primates, Gibbons have molars that are more flat than those found in herbivores.
Chimpanzee(Great Ape/Hominade)
A. Chimpanzees are found in the African rain forests, grasslands, and woodlands. They use tools, walk upright and can perform complicated tasks.
B. Chimpanzees are omnivores and eat plants and fruits like the other primates. They can have a different diet than other primates because they occupy different regions.
C. Because chimpanzees occupy different regions, their dentition allows them to have a varied diet.
From the research that I have done, I can conclude that the environment and behavioral influences on these primates has an effect on the way their dentitions are formed. The structure of their teeth are different and have been adapted for different diets due to their living conditions and environment. They almost have the same dentition form but have adapted minor varieties for each one.
Hi Zach,
ReplyDeleteGood post, I can tell you put a lot of thought into your work. I noticed a similar relationship between the environment and locomotion with my post. The animals all share a set of basic similar traits, the traits that are conducive to their environment stick around, and other traits must be adapted to make life successful in the various homes these animals inhabit. I wonder what type of meats chimpanzees and if their teeth have adapted to their diet to the extent of the baboons teeth.
--Cody Bever
Good background on the environment of each primate.
ReplyDeleteDo lemurs have any teeth other than the dental comb? A description of the full dentition would have been good.
For the remaining four primates, you describe the diet in part B instead of the dentition. Your focus trait was the dentition of each primate. Yes, the diet influences dentition, but it is part of the environment and would have come into the discussion in part A and part C. For all primates, a discussion of dental formula and their morphology should have been included. You do discuss this a little in part C for baboons and gibbons.
There is a connection between meat consumption and teeth. Is there any other environmental pressure that might have resulted in the large canines in baboons, other than diet? What do male baboons use those canines for?
What is unique about chimpanzees that allow them to have a varied diet that you say it has, in comparison with the other primates? All of these primates are omnivorous to a certain degree. Do you see evidence of this in their dentition?
I agree with your summary, that there are many similarities in the dentition of these primates but they have important differences that reflect dietary and other environmental influences. You needed to provide more evidence for this for each primate.
Hey there Zach,
ReplyDeleteAwesome job in the assignment. You were able to make it really interesting. I didnt know that lemurs have teeth specially designed for grooming. I would have never believed how much they resembled combs if you hadn't included that picture. I noticed that for the most part they have similar diets. I thought that all of them would eat bugs but I was wrong. =)
Good job!
Zach,
ReplyDeleteI thought this post was very informative. It is interesting to see how the environment can physically affect the primates. I also did not know that the lemur's teeth can be used to comb. The picture you posted shows that their teeth actually resemble combs which I thought was very interesting.