Mesopithecus

Mesopithecus
Mesopithecus
Temporal range: Late Miocene–Late Pliocene
Conservation status
Fossil
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Primates
Family: Cercopithecidae
Subfamily: Colobinae
Genus: Mesopithecus
Species
  • M. pentelici

Mesopithecus ("middle monkey") is an extinct genus of Old World monkey that lived in Europe and western Asia 7 to 5 million years ago. It was once thought that it might be an ancestor of the grey langur, but a more recent study[1] suggests that they are more closely related to the snub-nosed monkeys and doucs.

Mesopithecus resembled a modern macaque, with a body length of about 40 centimetres (16 in). It was adapted to both walking and climbing, possessing a slender body with long, muscular limbs and flexible fingers. Its teeth suggest that it primarily ate soft leaves and fruit.[2]

Mesopithecus pentelici skulls

References

  1. ^ Pan, Ruliang; Groves, Colin; Oxnard, Charles (2004). "Relationships Between the Fossil Colobine Mesopithecus pentelicus and Extant Cercopithecoids, Based on Dental Metrics" (PDF). American Journal of Primatology 62 (4): 287–299. doi:10.1002/ajp.20022. PMID 15085533. http://arts.anu.edu.au/grovco/Mesopithecus%20Pan%20Oxnard.pdf. Retrieved 2009-01-26. 
  2. ^ Palmer, D., ed (1999). The Marshall Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals. London: Marshall Editions. pp. 289. ISBN 1-84028-152-9. 

External links


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