5: Meet the Living Primates

Biological Anthropology Lab · LibreTexts

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    From LibreTexts, under CC BY 1.0, as the source states it; its equations are written in TeX, which the PDF shows typeset. This page at LibreTexts.

    Learning Objectives
    • Explain the form and function of primate features
    • Discuss and depict the primate order and suborders

    • 5.1: What Makes Something a Primate?
      This page details the defining traits of primates, emphasizing their reliance on vision with forward-facing eyes, larger brains, reduced snouts, and sophisticated social structures. Key adaptations include opposable digits and tactile pads for manipulation, as well as arboreal behaviors due to their habitat in tropical regions.
    • 5.2: Primate Classification
      This page covers primate classification by examining physical traits that distinguish primates and their subgroups, specifically Strepsirrhini and Haplorrhini. It discusses skeletal features' roles in behavior and adaptation, highlighting the differences among tarsiers, New World monkeys, and Old World monkeys based on genetic and anatomical evidence. The page concludes with an invitation to construct a primate evolutionary tree, illustrating relationships based on these key characteristics.

    Thumbnail: Side and top views of postorbital closures and bars.

    This page titled 5: Meet the Living Primates was last modified on Sun, 17 May 2026 00:08:50 GMT and is shared under a CC BY 1.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Explorations (Anthropology).