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Paleontology and Geology of Laetoli: Human Evolution in Context pp 83–139Cite as

Cercopithecids (Cercopithecidae, Primates)

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Part of the book series: Vertebrate Paleobiology and Paleoanthropology Series ((VERT))

Abstract

New finds from Laetoli have allowed a more detailed assessment of the taxonomy and paleobiology of the fossil ­cercopithecids. Most of the specimens consist of isolated teeth, jaw fragments and postcranial bones from the Upper Laetolil Beds (∼3.5–3.8 Ma), but four specimens are known from the Upper Ndolanya Beds (∼2.66 Ma) and a proximal humerus has been recovered from the Lower Laetolil Beds (∼3.8–4.3 Ma). Four species are represented: Parapapio ado, Papionini gen. et sp. indet., cf. Rhinocolobus sp., and Cercopithecoides sp. Parapapio ado is the most common species. Based on dental size and proportions and facial morphology, Pp. ado can be distinguished from all other species of Parapapio. The postcranial specimens attributed to Pp. ado indicate that it was a slender and agile semi-terrestrial monkey. A few isolated teeth represent a second species of papionin, larger in dental size than Pp. ado. Due to the paucity of the material, the taxon is left unassigned at the genus and species level. A distal humerus attributed to this taxon indicates that it was large terrestrial cercopithecid. The most common species of colobine is referred to cf. Rhinocolobus sp., based on its overall similarities to Rhinocolobus turkanaensis. The material can be distinguished from all fossil colobine species previously recognized from Africa, but without more complete cranial specimens it is not possible to diagnose a new taxon. From the postcranial material it can be inferred that it was generally adapted for arboreal quadrupedalism. The somewhat smaller species of colobine represents a previously undescribed species of Cercopithecoides. The postcranial specimens attributed to this taxon indicate that it was fully arboreal. Analysis of the distribution of the Laetoli cercopithecids provides provisional evidence of spatial patterning and temporal trends. For example, the dentition of Parapapio exhibits a trend to increase in size during the course of the Upper Laetolil Beds. As at other late Miocene and early Pliocene localities older than 3.5 Ma, the Laetoli cercopithecid community is characterized by the absence of Theropithecus and the relatively large proportion of colobines. After 3.5 Ma Theropithecus becomes the dominant cercopithecid at all East African ­localities, and the proportion of colobines declines accordingly.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Ndessokia (1990: 175, 177) added Theropithecus darti to the faunal list of the Upper Laetolil Beds, based on material from his 1987–1988 collections. The location of these collections is unknown, so the identification cannot be verified. Given the absence of Theropithecus from the extensive Leakey and Harrison collections, it seems unlikely that this taxon was present in the Upper Laetolil Beds. It is possible that the material on which the identification is based is intrusive from the Ngaloba Beds, in which Theropithecus is known to occur (Harrison, personal observation).

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Acknowledgements

The author is grateful to the Tanzania Commission for Science and Technology and the Unit of Antiquities in Dar es Salaam for permission to conduct research in Tanzania. Special thanks go to Paul Msemwa (Director) and Amandus Kweka, as well as to all of the staff at the National Museum of Tanzania in Dar es Salaam, for their support and assistance. The Government of Kenya and the National Museums of Kenya are thanked for permission to study the collections in Nairobi. Thanks go to Emma Mbua, Mary Muungu, Meave Leakey (Kenya National Museum), Jerry Hooker, Peter Andrews, Paula Jenkins, Daphne Hills (Natural History Museum, London), Oliver Hampe, Wolf-Dieter Heinrich (Humboldt-Universität Museum für Naturkunde, Berlin), Nancy Simmons, Ross MacPhee, Eric Delson, and Eileen Westwig (American Museum of Natural History, New York) for access to specimens in their care. For their advice, discussion, help and support I gratefully acknowledge the following individuals: P. Andrews, H. Carter-Menn, E. Delson, S. Elton, S. Frost, C. Gilbert, L. Hlusko, N. Jablonski, C. Jolly, D.M.K. Kamamba, M.G. Leakey, C.S. Msuya, S. Odunga, M. Pickford, K. Reed, M. Rose and D. Su. I am especially grateful to S. Frost and N. Jablonski for their excellent feedback on the manuscript. Research on the Laetoli cercopithecids was supported by grants from the National Geographic Society, the Leakey Foundation, and NSF (Grants BCS-9903434 and BCS-0309513).

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  1. Center for the Study of Human Origins, Department of Anthropology, New York University, 25 Waverly Place, New York, NY, 10003, USA

    Terry Harrison

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  1. Center for the Study of Human Origins Department of Anthropology, New York University, 25 Waverly Place, New York, NY, 10003, USA

    Terry Harrison

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Harrison, T. (2011). Cercopithecids (Cercopithecidae, Primates). In: Harrison, T. (eds) Paleontology and Geology of Laetoli: Human Evolution in Context. Vertebrate Paleobiology and Paleoanthropology Series. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-9962-4_6

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