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In earlier classification, New World monkeys, Old World monkeys, apes, and humans – collectively known as simians or anthropoids – were grouped under Anthropoidea (/ ˌ æ n θ r ə ˈ p ɔɪ d i. ə /; from Ancient Greek ἄνθρωπος (ánthrōpos) 'human' and -οειδής (-oeidḗs) 'resembling, connected to, etc.'), while the strepsirrhines and tarsiers were grouped under the ...
The relationships among the different groups of primates were not clearly understood until relatively recently, so the commonly used terms are somewhat confused. For example, ape has been used either as an alternative for monkey or for any tailless, relatively human-like primate. [5] [6]
Monkey is the symbol of fourth Tirthankara in Jainism, Abhinandananatha. [72] [73] Hanuman, a prominent deity in Hinduism, is a human-like monkey god who is believed to bestow courage, strength and longevity to the person who thinks about him or Rama. In Buddhism, the monkey is an early incarnation of Buddha but may also represent trickery and ...
Phylogenetic tree of the primates Notharctus. The evolutionary history of the primates can be traced back 57-90 million years. [1] One of the oldest known primate-like mammal species, Plesiadapis, came from North America; [2] another, Archicebus, came from China. [3]
South America suffered another major loss of mammal species in the Quaternary extinction event, which started around 12,500 cal BP, at roughly the time of arrival of Paleoindians, and may have lasted up to several thousand years. At least 37 genera of mammals were eliminated, including most of the megafauna. [5]
The kinkajou has a short-haired, fully prehensile tail (like some New World monkeys), which it uses as a "fifth hand" in climbing. It does not use its tail for grasping food. It can rotate its ankles and feet 180°, making it easy for the animal to run backward over tree limbs and climb down trees headfirst. [23]
Proconsul's monkey-like features include pronograde posture, indicated by a long flexible back, curved metacarpals, and an above-branch arboreal quadrupedal positional repertoire. The primary feature linking Proconsul with extant apes is its lack of a tail; other "ape-like" features include its enhanced grasping capabilities, stabilized elbow ...
(Other animals living in forests have acquired some or all of these properties through convergent evolution, including members of the mongoose, civet, weasel, cat, and bear families.) The coati snout is long and somewhat pig-like – part of the reason for its nickname, the "hog-nosed raccoon". It is also extremely flexible and can rotate up to ...