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Diet and Gut Morphology in Primates

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Abstract

There has been much discussion of the conspicuous differences in (1) body size and shape, (2) efficiency of the gastro-intestinal tract and (3) behavioural biology between those mammals subsisting mainly on animal matter and those that graze or browse on grass and (e.g. Moir, 1968; Vallenas et al., 1971; Jolly, 1972; Jarman, 1974; Wilson, 1975; Janis, 1976; Clutton-Brock, 1977). The former have been labelled as “insectivores” or “carnivores”, according to the kind of animal matter consumed, thereby following taxonomic, and thus evolutionary, relationships; the latter are usually called “herbivores”, irrespective of the kind of plant matter eaten, even though the distinction between ruminating, refecting and other herbivores has been stressed in the wide debate. More precise subdivisions are necessary, therefore, although these gross categories still have a use, especially in correlative studies; the two extremes are best labelled, however, “faunivory” and “folivory”, respectively.

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Chivers, D.J., Hladik, C.M. (1984). Diet and Gut Morphology in Primates. In: Chivers, D.J., Wood, B.A., Bilsborough, A. (eds) Food Acquisition and Processing in Primates. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4757-5244-1_9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4757-5244-1_9

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4757-5246-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4757-5244-1

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