The Taxonomy of Primates When we talk about monkeys we tend to think about them as one big family since they tend to have similar external appearances or characteristics. And in fact they are a big family, however as we take a closer look at each individual monkey, they reveal unique and distinctive characteristics that allow us to categorized and place them into subfamilies. All monkeys belong to the huge primate family, which it divides into two subfamilies: Old World monkeys and New World monkeys (Bernal, 2013). The Old World monkeys can be found in Asia and Africa, while the New World monkeys are found in Central and South America (Bernal, 2013). As we can see, today the location of these families are far apart, however it is thought
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And due to their extensive locations they live in very different habitat. As Henry, 2001, states Old World Monkeys are divided into two subfamilies: Cercopithecines and Colobines, these two families share a common background however they have distinct characteristics among themselves. The subfamily of cercopithecines monkeys tend to sleep on trees or cliffs (Henry, 2001). These monkeys spend most of their time in big groups looking for food, and they share a very visual characteristic, their cheek pouches. This characteristic is very important since their cheek pouches are very useful to storage food (Bernal, 2013). In contrary to the cercopithecines, the colobines family do not have cheek pouches, however they have a sacculated stomach. Which means their stomach is like a sack with compartments, a very useful trait because this is where bacteria and other unusual matter breaks down providing a more useable calories for these monkeys (Bernal, 2013). Both families of the Old World monkeys have a nose that is push down, and their nostrils are closer together and open downwards or forward (Henry, 2001). Old world monkeys have two premolars, and they are well known for their sharp canines (Henry, 2001). As Henry, 2001, stated old world monkeys have a non-grasping tail and in some cases the tail is absent. They also have a …show more content…
Some of the characteristics that humans share are their opposable thumb that helps them have a better grasp on things (Karen, 2016). Also being diurnal is another common characteristic, even when human have the option to become nocturnal. The one characteristic that shows up the moist is that humans have a long juvenile, gestation and life stages (Gonzalez, 2015). Humans tend to have relatively few offspring because they emphasis on parental care and quality not quantity just like many primates (Gonzales, 2015). Humans tend to spend much more time with their children and have a lifelong relationship with them as well. Due to the shared characteristics, the old world monkeys are closer to humans than New World
And due to their extensive locations they live in very different habitat. As Henry, 2001, states Old World Monkeys are divided into two subfamilies: Cercopithecines and Colobines, these two families share a common background however they have distinct characteristics among themselves. The subfamily of cercopithecines monkeys tend to sleep on trees or cliffs (Henry, 2001). These monkeys spend most of their time in big groups looking for food, and they share a very visual characteristic, their cheek pouches. This characteristic is very important since their cheek pouches are very useful to storage food (Bernal, 2013). In contrary to the cercopithecines, the colobines family do not have cheek pouches, however they have a sacculated stomach. Which means their stomach is like a sack with compartments, a very useful trait because this is where bacteria and other unusual matter breaks down providing a more useable calories for these monkeys (Bernal, 2013). Both families of the Old World monkeys have a nose that is push down, and their nostrils are closer together and open downwards or forward (Henry, 2001). Old world monkeys have two premolars, and they are well known for their sharp canines (Henry, 2001). As Henry, 2001, stated old world monkeys have a non-grasping tail and in some cases the tail is absent. They also have a …show more content…
Some of the characteristics that humans share are their opposable thumb that helps them have a better grasp on things (Karen, 2016). Also being diurnal is another common characteristic, even when human have the option to become nocturnal. The one characteristic that shows up the moist is that humans have a long juvenile, gestation and life stages (Gonzalez, 2015). Humans tend to have relatively few offspring because they emphasis on parental care and quality not quantity just like many primates (Gonzales, 2015). Humans tend to spend much more time with their children and have a lifelong relationship with them as well. Due to the shared characteristics, the old world monkeys are closer to humans than New World