Understanding Primate Taxonomy: Lab Activity Guide

Lab Activity #5: Primate Taxonomy By the end of this Lab Activity, students will be able to: 1. Recognize and assess the features necessary to guide taxonomic placement in primates 2. Determine the taxonomic category and group of representative primate specimens 3. Provide explicit rationale for making primate taxonomic decisions. Prior to be beginning this Lab Activity, be sure to review all Module Required Resources. In particular, review the full primate taxonomy covered in Lecture and copied on page 3 below. For each category (pink) the group names (yellow) are listed on the same line. The group in which humans are not placed is on the left. The group in which we are placed is on the right. To answer the questions, it is important to understand that for each station, the questions jumble up the taxonomic levels. In other words, some questions ask for a higher taxonomic group (move up the chart), while other questions ask for a lower taxonomic group (move down the chart). This requires a great deal of critical thinking. Moving UP the chart is simple because the yellow lines guide you. Moving DOWN the chart takes reasoning and justification to decide which of the two (or more) categories lower in the chart is correct. Consider this “Pretend Food Taxonomy” Analogy: What Suborder are Honeydews in? A: Plants (move UP the chart) What Suborder are Watermelons in? A: Plants (move UP the chart) For both Honeydews and Watermelons, you move UP the taxonomy and just follow the upward lines. If we previously learned the “rule” that watermelons are MELONS with red interiors and honeydews are melons with green interiors…and the picture and questions are below, your answers should be as follows: This is a MELON. What Superfamily is it? A: Watermelon How do you know? A: Watermelons = red interior

For each station: 1. Investigate and carefully analyze the picture for each station. It will tell you everything you need to know to answer the questions for that station. 2. Decide whether each question is asking you to move UP or DOWN the taxonomic chart. 3. Review Lecture Notes regarding the “rules” (anatomical or skeletal features) to place a specimen into one or the other group (yellow on the main chart). These are “deciding characteristics”. 4. For all “How do you know” questions that ask you to move DOWN the chart, you must use one of the “deciding characteristics” discussed in lecture or in the textbook. The “deciding characteristic” must be identifiable from the picture included. You may not simply say something like, “Because that’s what the chart says.” 5. For questions that ask you to move UP the chart, you may include “Move up the chart” in your answer. FULL PRIMATE TAXONOMY CHART

STATION #1 This is an Anthropoid. Order: Primates Suborder: Haplorhini Parvorder: Platyrrhini How do you know? Their flat downward nose.

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STATION #2 This is a Haplorhine. This is NOT a Tarsiiforme. Parvorder: Cattarhini How do you know? It has the 2.1.2.3 dental formula they have. Order: Primate Class: Mammalia

STATION #3 This is a Catarrhine Superfamily: Hominoidea How do you know? They have the Y-5 molar. Suborder: Haplorhini Infraorder: Anthropoidea Class: Mammalia

STATION #4 This is an Anthropoid Dental formula is 2-1-2-3 Suborder: Haplorhini Superfamily: Cercopithecoidea How do you know? Cercopithecoidea are the old monkeys that had tails. Order: Primates Parvorder: Cattarhini How do you know? The dental formula.

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STATION #5 This is a Hominoid Family: Hominidae How do you know? Bipedalism, he’s standing, seemingly walking, upright on two legs. Subfamily: Homininae How do you know? He’s standing upright and not hunched over on four legs. Tribe: Homonini How do you know? Upright posture and Bipedal

STATION #6 This is a Mammal Order: Primates How do you know? It’s forward-facing post-orbital and bar. Suborder: Strepsirhini How do you know? Post-Orbital Bar

STATION #7 This is an Anthropoid It can NOT hang from its tail Superfamily: Cercopithecoidiea How do you know? It has a long head, must be cattarhini and have bilophodont molars. Suborder: Haplorhini

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Lab Activity #5 - Primate Taxonomy

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