imported>PrimeBOT: Task 24: template replacement following an RFD

2025-05-05T00:02:41Z

Task 24: template replacement following an RFD

New page

{{short description|Genus of primates}}
{{Speciesbox
| image = Catopithecus browni.jpg
| image_alt =
| image_caption ='' Catopithecus'', Musee d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris
| extinct = yes
| fossil_range = {{fossil range|Late Eocene}}
| genus = Catopithecus
| species = browni
| authority = [[Elwyn L. Simons|Simons]] [[1989 in paleontology|1989]]<ref name=Simons_1989/>
| parent_authority = [[Elwyn L. Simons|Simons]] [[1989 in paleontology|1989]]<ref name=Simons_1989/>
| synonyms =
| synonyms_ref =
| subdivision_ranks =
| subdivision =
}}

'''''Catopithecus''''' is an early [[catarrhine]] fossil. It is known from more than 16 specimens of a single species, '''''Catopithecus browni''''', found in the [[Jebel Qatrani Formation]] of the [[Faiyum Governorate]], Egypt.<ref name=Simons_1989/> The [[Jebel Qatrani Formation]] has been divided into two main faunal zones based on the fact that the fauna found in the lower portion of the quarry appear to be more primitive than those found in the upper section.<ref name=Simons_1990/> The upper zone has been dated to older than 31 ± 1 myr based on the dating of a basalt layer that lies immediately above the formation and [[Nicolas Steno]]'s Law of Superposition.<ref name=Simons_1989/> The lower zone contains the late Eocene green shale unit called Locality-41 (L-41) in which all the specimens of ''Catopithecus browni'' have been found. The relative dating of L-41 based on paleomagnetic correlations places it at 36 Myr according to Simons et al (1999),<ref name=Simons_et_al_1999/> but Seiffert (2006) suggests this should be revised to 34.8-33.9 Myr.<ref name="Seiffert">{{cite journal |author=Seiffert Erik R. |title=Revised age estimates for the later Paleogene mammal faunas of Egypt and Oman|journal=Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America |volume=103 |issue=13 |pages=5000–5005 |date=Jan 2006 | doi=10.1073/pnas.0600689103 |pmid=16549773|pmc=1458784|bibcode=2006PNAS..103.5000S|doi-access=free}}</ref>

==Etymology==

The name comes from the Greek elements ''{{Transliteration|grc|cato}}'' meaning "below" and ''{{Transliteration|grc|pithekos}}'' meaning "one who plays tricks" (an ape), so ''Catopithecus'' means "below (before) ape".<ref name=Simons_1989/> The species name, ''browni'', is from the discoverer of the type specimen, Mark Brown.<ref name=Simons_1989/>

==Morphology==
The type specimen of ''C. browni'', CGM 41885, is a right mandible discovered in 1987 by Mark Brown. The mandible was found with intact molars 1-3, and premolars 3-4, and alveoli are present for a canine tooth and incisors 1-2, indicating a lower dental formula of 2.1.2.3. This dental formula was demonstrated to reflect the upper (maxillary) dental formula in specimen DPC 8701 which was discovered in L-41 in 1988.<ref name=Simons_1990/> At least 17 specimens, including six almost intact skulls, have been described and are listed below:

Skulls: DPC 8701, CGM 42222, DPC 11388, DPC 11594, DPC 12367, and CGM 41900
Mandibles and other fragments: DPC 7339, 7340, 7341, 7342, 8772, 9869, 11434, 11541, 11638, and DPC 11943

Analyses of the skull specimens show that ''C. browni'' had post-orbital closure developed to the degree seen in extant anthropoids.<ref name=Simons_Rasmussen_1996/> The orbit to skull size ratio of the ''C. browni'' skulls were compared to ratios of modern nocturnal and diurnal anthropoids in Rasmussen and Simmons (1992) and demonstrated that ''C. browni'' was most likely diurnal. The interorbital distance of the skulls was also compared to five taxa of modern primates in Rasmussen and Simons (1992), and demonstrated that C. browni had an interorbital distance range comparing it most closely to those of modern prosimians and callitrichids.<ref name=Simons_Rasmussen_1996/>

In contrast to extant anthropoids that express a fused mandibular symphysis, the mandibular symphysis of ''C. browni'' was observed to be unfused but covered in small rugose features in at least seven specimens.<ref name=Rasmussen_Simons_1992/>

The dentition of ''C. browni'' shows well developed crests on the buccal side (nearest to the cheek) of the tooth which is indicative of a folivorous and/or insectivorous diet, both of which require teeth expressing the cutting edges seen on the molars of C. browni.<ref name=Rasmussen_Simons_1992/> The three molars of ''C. browni'' decrease in size posteriorly, meaning that M1>M2>M3.<ref name=Simons_1989/> Allometric molar size regressions were used to calculate an estimated weight range of 600-900 g for ''C. browni''.<ref name=Simons_Rasmussen_1996/> Both upper and lower canines were observed to be relatively large and long compared to the adjacent spatulate, and vertically placed incisors which are all features of modern anthropoids.<ref name=Simons_1995/>

The size of the olfactory bulb was measured as 4–5 mm long and 4 mm wide from specimen DPC 11434, a piece of fragmented frontal bone, using a latex mold of the outline of the imprinted braincase.<ref name=Simons_Rasmussen_1996/> Compared to the size of its cranium, this large olfactory bulb indicates a higher reliance on olfactory than visual senses, a feature not shared with modern anthropoids. The same specimen preserved a cross section of the [[ectotympanic]] ring, showing it to be an annular structure which was fused to the margin of the bulla similar in structure to modern platyrrhines.<ref name=Simons_Rasmussen_1996/>

CGM 42222 is the specimen in which the outline of the braincase was best preserved. After adjusting for potential distortion caused by crushing, a brain model was prepared that determining the approximate volume of the brain of CGM 42222 to be 3.1 cm<sup>3</sup> ± 10%.4 Using the estimations of brain volume and body weight an encephalization quotient (EQ) was calculated that showed the brain volume to body size ratio of C. browni is small compared to extant anthropoids of similar weight.<ref name=Simons_Rasmussen_1996/>

==Habitat==

Floral and faunal fossils associated with oligopithecine specimens suggest that ''Catopithecus'' and other oligopithecines inhabited wet, warm, forested and swampy, tropical environments.<ref name=Rasmussen_Simons_1992/>

==Conclusions==

''C. browni'' is a morphologically primitive anthropoid which occurred near the base of the catarrhine radiation. Its primitive features include an unfused mandibular symphysis, relatively large olfactory bulbs, small brain size, and large dentition compared to face and braincase. ''C. browni'' expresses notable derived anthropoid and catarrhine traits including an "anthropoidea-like" auditory region, a reduction in the number of premolars per quadrant of both the maxilla and mandible, and the degree of observed postorbital closure.<ref name=Simons_Rasmussen_1996/> These features have led to a general agreement on the phylogenetic affinity of ''Catopithecus'' as a sister taxon of propliopithecine catarrhines.<ref name=Simons_et_al_1999/>

Claims of "substantial sexual dimorphism" have been made by several scientists but it is an extremely difficult claim to confirm as a result of the small sample size analyzed and conclusions based on sexual dimorphism should be acknowledged as possibilities, not as concrete fact.{{original research inline|date=April 2012}}

==References==
{{Reflist|colwidth=30em|refs=

<ref name=Simons_1989>{{Cite journal | last1 = Simons | first1 = Elwyn L. |author-link=Elwyn L. Simons | title = Description of two genera and species of late Eocene Anthropoidea from Egypt | doi = 10.1073/pnas.86.24.9956 | journal = Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences | volume = 86 | issue = 24 | pages = 9956–9960 | year = 1989 | pmid = 2513576| pmc = 298621| bibcode = 1989PNAS...86.9956S | doi-access = free }}</ref>

<ref name=Simons_1990>{{Cite journal | last1 = Simons | first1 = Elwyn L. |author-link=Elwyn L. Simons | title = Discovery of the oldest known anthropoidean skull from the paleogene of Egypt | doi = 10.1126/science.2108499 | journal = Science | volume = 247 | issue = 4950 | pages = 1567–1569 | year = 1990 | pmid = 2108499| bibcode = 1990Sci...247.1567S }}</ref>

<ref name=Simons_et_al_1999>{{Cite journal | last1 = Simons | first1 = Elwyn L. |author-link=Elwyn L. Simons | last2 = Plavcan | first2 = J. M. | last3 = Fleagle | first3 = J. G. | doi = 10.1073/pnas.96.5.2559 | title = Canine sexual dimorphism in Egyptian Eocene anthropoid primates: ''Catopithecus'' and ''Proteopithecus'' | journal = Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences | volume = 96 | issue = 5 | pages = 2559–2562 | year = 1999 | pmid = 10051682| pmc = 26824 | bibcode = 1999PNAS...96.2559S| doi-access = free }}</ref>

<ref name=Simons_Rasmussen_1996>{{Cite journal | last1 = Simons | first1 = Elwyn L. |author-link=Elwyn L. Simons | last2 = Rasmussen | first2 = D. T. | doi = 10.1002/(SICI)1096-8644(199606)100:2<261::AID-AJPA7>3.0.CO;2-# | title = Skull of ''Catopithecus browni'', an early tertiary catarrhine | journal = American Journal of Physical Anthropology | volume = 100 | issue = 2 | pages = 261–292 | year = 1996 | pmid = 8771315 }}</ref>

<ref name=Rasmussen_Simons_1992>{{Cite journal | last1 = Rasmussen | first1 = D. T. | last2 = Simons | first2 = Elwyn L. |author-link2=Elwyn L. Simons | doi = 10.1007/BF02547829 | title = Paleobiology of the oligopithecines, the earliest known anthropoid primates | journal = International Journal of Primatology | volume = 13 | issue = 5 | pages = 477–508 | year = 1992 | s2cid = 24355126 }}</ref>

<ref name=Simons_1995>{{Cite journal | last1 = Simons | first1 = Elwyn L. |author-link=Elwyn L. Simons | title = Skulls and anterior teeth of ''Catopithecus'' (primates:Anthropoidea) from the Eocene and anthropoid origins | doi = 10.1126/science.7604261 | journal = Science | volume = 268 | issue = 5219 | pages = 1885–1888 | year = 1995 | pmid = 7604261 }}</ref>
}}

{{Haplorhini|C.}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q5053851|from2=Q20717410}}

[[Category:Oligopithecidae]]
[[Category:Eocene primates]]
[[Category:Eocene mammals of Africa]]
[[Category:Fossil taxa described in 1989]]

Catopithecus - Revision history

imported>PrimeBOT: Task 24: template replacement following an RFD