Topic
Sivapithecus
About: Sivapithecus is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 153 publications have been published within this topic receiving 7312 citations.
Papers published on a yearly basis
Papers
TL;DR: Qualitative differences in dental microwear between primate species that are known to have different diets are reported and it is shown that enamel microwear can be used to distinguish between those with a mainly frugivorous diet and those with an mainly folivorous one.
Abstract: Studies of dental microwear have been used to relate tooth form to function in a variety of recent and extinct mammals. Probably the most important aspect of microwear analysis is the possibility of using it to deduce the diet of extinct animals. Such deductions must be based on comparative studies of modern species with known diets, but to date, only qualitative studies have been attempted and all have been based on small samples. Here we report quantitative differences in dental microwear between primate species that are known to have different diets. Occlusal facets with different functions have previously been shown to exhibit different microwear patterns. However, the differences between facets of one species are shown to be far less than those between homologous facets of different species. Study of seven species of extant primates shows that enamel microwear can be used to distinguish between those with a mainly frugivorous diet and those with a mainly folivorous one. Microwear can also distinguish hard-object feeders from soft-fruit eaters. The microwear of Miocene Sivapithecus indicus cannot be distinguished statistically from that of the chimpanzee, but it is different from that of the other species. On this evidence S. indicus was not a hard-object feeder and the adaptive significance of its thick molar enamel is at present unknown.
392 citations
Book•
1 Jan 1997
TL;DR: Function and Phylogeny in Miocene Hominoids C.V. Ward, et al, and Comments on the Last Decades of Research on MioceneHominoids and Hominid Origins D.D. Ward.
Abstract: Function and Phylogeny in Miocene Hominoids C.V. Ward, et al. Comments on the Last Decades of Research on Miocene Hominoids and Hominid Origins D. Pilbeam. Inter-Relationships Between Functional Morphology and Paleoenvironments in Miocene Hominoids P. Andrews, et al. The Early Evolution of the Hominoid Face T.C. Rae. Functional and Phylogenetic Features of the Forelimb in Miocene M.D. Rose. Functional Anatomy and Phyletic Implications of the Hominoid Trunk and Hindlimb C.V. Ward. Dental Evidence for Diets in Some Miocene Catarrhines with Comments on the Effects of Phylogeny on the Interpretation of Adaptation R.F. Kay, P.S. Ungar. Miocene Hominoid Mandibles: Functional and Phylogenetic Perspectives B. Brown. Paleobiological and Phylogenetic Significance of Life History in Miocene Hominoids J. Kelley. Proconsul - Function and Phylogeny A. Walker. Afrophitecus - Function and Phylogeny M. Leakey, A. Walker. On the Relationships and Africa M.L. McCrossi, B.R. Benefit. The Taxonomy and Phylogeny of Sivapithecus Revisited S. Ward. Phyletic Affinities and Functional Convergence in Dryopithecus and Other Miocene and Living Hominids D. Begun, L. Kordo. 4 Additional Articles. Index.
285 citations
TL;DR: The fossil is a Sivapithecus indicus adult, probably male, and consists of most of the left side of the face including a small portion of the frontal bone, the zygomatic arch and temporo-mandibular joint, the maxilla, a virtually entire mandible and the complete dentition.
Abstract: Neogene hominoid cranial material is regrettably scarce, especially from the middle and late Miocene. Between the 18-Myr-old virtually complete early Miocene Proconsul africanus skull from Rusinga1 and the 3–4-Myr-old Hadar hominoid cranial material2, the only significant large (non-hylobatid) hominoid facial or cranial specimens are those from the late Miocene Salonika in Greece3, Yassioren in Turkey4, Lufeng in China5, the possibly middle Miocene site of Moroto in Uganda6 and the new facial-mandibular piece from late Miocene deposits in Pakistan reported here. The specimen is a Sivapithecus indicus7 adult, probably male, and consists of most of the left side of the face including a small portion of the frontal bone, the zygomatic arch and temporo-mandibular joint, the maxilla, a virtually entire mandible and the complete dentition. The fossil, catalogued as GSP 15000, is the property of the Government of Pakistan and is at present on loan for study at Harvard University.
224 citations
TL;DR: The discovery of an extraordinary partial skeleton of Dryopithecus laietanus from Can Llobateres (Spain) provides evidence that orthograde postures and locomotion appeared at least 9.5 million years ago, strengthening previous hypotheses linking both Miocene forms with Pongo.
Abstract: THE evolution of skeletal adaptations to orthograde postures, characteristic of extant hominoids, is of great interest as it provides the key to understanding the origins of apes and humans. We report here the recent discovery of an extraordinary partial skeleton of Dryopithecus laietanus from Can Llobateres (Spain). It provides evidence that orthograde postures and locomotion appeared at least 9.5 million years ago1. Our results indicate that the body structure of this Miocene ape closely resembles that of extant hominoids2,3 and differs from the prono-grade pattern of Miocene proconsulids4,5 in a set of important morphological characters. Dryopithecusalso shows more traits reflecting structural adaptations for suspension than occurs in African apes. A similar positional behaviour is inferred for Sivapithecus indicus, thus strengthening previous hypotheses linking both Miocene forms with Pongo6–9.
214 citations
TL;DR: It has become apparent that the radiation leading to the modern hominoids was somewhat more recent than had been believed, and that most of the Miocene hominoid species had little to do with the evolutionary history of the living apes.
Abstract: The evolutionary history of the living hominoids has remained elusive despite years of exploration and the discovery of numerous Miocene fossil ape species. Part of the difficulty can be attributed to the changing nature of our views about the course of hominoid evolution. In the 1950s and 1960s, individual Miocene taxa were commonly viewed as the direct ancestors of specific living ape species, suggesting an early divergence of the modern lineages.1–5 However, in most cases, the Miocene forms were essentially “dental apes,” resembling extant species in dental and a few cranial features, but possessing more primitive postcranial features that suggested arboreal quadrupedalism rather than suspensory habits. With the introduction of molecular methods of phylogenetic reconstruction and the increasing use of cladistic analysis, it has become apparent that the radiation leading to the modern hominoids was somewhat more recent than had been believed, and that most of the Miocene hominoid species had little to do with the evolutionary history of the living apes. © 1998 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
203 citations
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| 2021 | 1 |
| 2020 | 1 |
| 2019 | 4 |
| 2018 | 1 |
| 2017 | 4 |
| 2016 | 3 |