Primates: What are and types

Primates are a Mammal orderconsisting of 13 families and 250 speciesamong which is The human being.

The character that helps us most identify are His intelligencecharacteristic that is due to its proportionally large brain. Later we will see what are the other characteristics of this group.

If you want to meet the 10 most intelligent animals in the world, do not miss this curious article.

The first primates They originated 85 to 55 million years agofrom a small mammal. These adapted to the life of the forests where they developed many of the characteristics they have today, as well as business hands.

As we will see later, we can distinguish between Primates of the old and new world. It is suggested that 40 million years ago, those of the Old World managed to reach the other side by assembling in objects that served as rafts to cross the ocean, thus colonizing this group to the new continent.

Most primates live in the tropical and subtropical regions of America, Asia and Africa, except for a few species, including man.

These are the main characteristics of the primates in a summary way:

• When we see a primate, we will notice that they have the Eyes located in front of the facewhich gives them a Three -dimensional vision. This has allowed them to master their environment in a privileged way.
• In general, primates are social animalsand what better example than us. Other primates also have family groups, harems, matriarchy or complex communities with certain roles.
• There is sexual dimorphismwhere males are larger and more dominant than females. Sometimes there may be sexual dicromatism, which means that males and females have different colors. In this post you can learn more about sexual dimorphism: what is and examples.
• Sexual maturation reaches late ages unlike other animals, but they are also longest. For example, Non -human hominids can live up to 45 years.
• They have one Scapular waistwhich is found in the torso and is formed by the clavicle and the scapula in the back.

There are two main groups of primates that are organized in the following orders:

• Los Rueptirrinos: They have a humid nose and a better smell. An example is the Loris.
• Hoporrinos: They have dry nose and depend more on sight than smell. Most of diurnal habits, and an example are monkeys.

Now, within the haporrinos we can distinguish between two more categories that are the parvoorders:

• Catarrinos: Also called Old World Monkesthey have nostrils down.
• Platirrinos: known as New World monkeysthey have the nostrils directed to the sides.

Now, according to families, we have the following primates groups:

• Gálagos: The galavids live in sub -Saharan Africa. They move on the trees and are of nocturnal habits.
• Loris: They are nocturnal and are short -tailed. It has opposable thumbs. They are similar to gálagos but their movements are much slower. Here you can meet the Perezoso Loris: Characteristics, Habitat and Food.
• Tarseros: Társidos have the tail and bones of very elongated fingers, which help them hold the trees and hunt insects. Their eyes are huge and serve to see good at night.
• Lemurs: Lemurids live in the Madagascar Islands, they are quadrupeds and arboric habits. They are the ones that we know properly as lemurs, although there are other similar groups such as the following. In this other post you can discover the types of lemur.
• Dwarf lemurs and lemurs mouse: The chirogaleids are of the smallest primates. The legs are short, the big eyes and also live in Madagascar.
• LEMURS SALTORS AND LEMURS COMADREJA: Lepilemurids have the ability to jump and are strict arborícoles. They only eat leaves and that is why they are the most inactive primates.
• Sifakas and related: They are great. They have long legs that use to move from tree to tree.
• Aye-Aye: There is only a kind of this Daubentonid family. He lives in Madagascar, has huge ears, disheveled and incisive hair that never stop growing.
• Howlers, spider monkeys and woolly monkeys: They are the largest primates in America. They have a presile tail that they use as a fifth limb and to move between trees.
• Night or Marikiñas mycos: They are the only night primates in America. They are small and flat.
• Sahuíes, Sakíes and Uakaríes: They are medium to small size. They have very dense furs.
• Titi, squirrel monkeys and related: The cubids are very social and small, typical of Central and South America. Most have a prénsil tail.
• Old World Monkeys: Cercopitécidos live in Africa and Asia. They are omnivores and folivores, this group belongs for example the macaques, mandriles, and other less famous primates, such as mangabey, dad or langur.
• GIBONES: Hilobatids are medium -sized and have no tail. They feed on fruits and move through a movement called brachiation, which is the balancing from one tree to another through their arms. They are monogamous and are very vocal.
• Hominids: They are the biggest primates. There are arboreal habits, such as orangutans, and terrestrial, such as chimpanzee or gorillas, and of course, the human being. In this other article you can read about hominids: what are, characteristics and evolution.

Now that you know the primates better, we encourage you to discover more examples reading this other post about the different types of monkeys.

If you want to read more articles similar to Primates: What are and typeswe recommend that you enter our biology category.