List of primates

Key takeaways

List of primates belongs to biology; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect List of primates to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of List of primates from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Primates is a diverse order of placental mammals which includes monkeys, lemurs, galagos, lorisids, tarsiers, and apes (including humans). Members of this order are called primates. The order currently comprises 505 extant species, which are grouped into 81 genera. The majority of primates live in South and Central America, Africa, and southern and Southeast Asia, in a variety of habitats, particularly forests but also including grasslands, savannas, shrublands, wetlands, deserts, and rocky areas. The exception is humans, which have spread worldwide to every biome. Primates come in a variety of body plans but typically feature large brains, a shoulder girdle allowing a large degree of movement in the shoulder joint, dexterous hands, and tails, sometimes prehensile. They range in size from Margot Marsh's mouse lemur, at 8 cm (3 in) plus a 11 cm (4 in) tail, to the eastern gorilla, at 196 cm (77 in), not including limbs. Primates are also the most intelligent animals and non-human primates are recorded to use tools, communicate with gestures and vocalizations, and have complex social systems. Primates is divided into two suborders: Haplorrhini and Strepsirrhini. The suborders are further subdivided into clades and families. Haplorrhini contains nine families in four major clades: Cercopithecoidea, containing the Old World monkeys of the family Cercopithecidae; Hominoidea, containing the great apes of the family Hominidae and the gibbons of the family Hylobatidae; Platyrrhines, or New World monkeys, divided into the families Aotidae, Atelidae, Callitrichidae, Cebidae, and Pitheciidae and containing night, howler, spider, woolly, capuchin, squirrel, and saki monkeys, marmosets, and tamarins; and Tarsiiformes, containing the tarsier family Tarsiidae. Strepsirrhini is split between two clades: Lemuroidea, divided into the families Cheirogaleidae (dwarf and mouse lemurs), Daubentoniidae (the aye-aye), Indriidae (wooly lemurs, sifakas, and indri), Lemuridae (lemurs), and Lepilemuridae (sportive lemurs); and Lorisoidea, split between the galago family Galagidae and the loris family Lorisidae. The exact organization of the species is not fixed, with many recent proposals made based on molecular phylogenetic analysis. Over 200 species, or more than 40 percent of all primates, are considered endangered or critically endangered.

Conventions The author citation for the species or genus is given after the scientific name; parentheses around the author citation indicate that this was not the original taxonomic placement. Range maps are provided wherever possible; if a range map is not available, a description of the collective range of species in that genera is provided. Ranges are based on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species unless otherwise noted.

Classification The order Primates consists of 505 extant species belonging to 81 genera. This does not include hybrid species or extinct prehistoric species. Modern molecular studies indicate that the 81 genera can be grouped into 16 families; these families are divided between two named suborders and are grouped in those suborders into named clades, and some of these families are subdivided into named subfamilies. Suborder Haplorrhini

Superfamily Cercopithecoidea Family Cercopithecidae (Old World monkeys) Subfamily Cercopithecinae (cercopithecine monkeys): 13 genera, 78 species Subfamily Colobinae (leaf-eating monkeys): 10 genera, 80 species Superfamily Hominoidea (apes) Family Hominidae (hominids) Subfamily Homininae (African hominids): 3 genera, 5 species Subfamily Ponginae (Asian hominids): 1 genus, 3 species Family Hylobatidae (gibbons): 4 genera, 20 species Parvorder Platyrrhines (New World monkeys) Family Aotidae (night monkeys): 1 genus, 11 species Family Atelidae Subfamily Alouattinae (howler monkeys): 1 genus, 12 species Subfamily Atelinae (spider and wooly monkeys): 3 genera, 11 species Family Callitrichidae (marmosets and tamarins): 7 genera, 43 species Family Cebidae Subfamily Cebinae (capuchin monkeys): 2 genera, 11 species Subfamily Saimiriinae (squirrel monkeys): 1 genus, 7 species Family Pitheciidae Subfamily Callicebinae (titi monkeys): 3 genera, 33 species Subfamily Pitheciinae (saki monkeys and uakaris: 3 genera, 25 species Infraorder Tarsiiformes Family Tarsiidae (tarsiers): 3 genera, 14 species Suborder Strepsirrhini

Superfamily Lemuroidea (lemurs) Family Cheirogaleidae (dwarf and mouse lemurs): 5 genera, 41 species Family Daubentoniidae (aye-aye): 1 genus, 1 species Family Indriidae (woolly lemurs, sifakas, and indri): 3 genera, 19 species Family Lemuridae (lemurs): 5 genera, 21 species Family Lepilemuridae (sportive lemurs): 1 genus, 25 species Superfamily Lorisoidea Family Galagidae (galagos): 6 genera, 19 species Family Lorisidae Subfamily Lorisinae (lorises): 3 genera, 11 species Subfamily Perodicticinae (angwantibos and pottos): 2 genera, 5 species

Primates The following classification is based on the taxonomy described by Mammal Species of the World (2005), with augmentation by generally accepted proposals made since using molecular phylogenetic analysis, as supported by both the IUCN and the American Society of Mammalogists.

Suborder Haplorrhini

Superfamily Cercopithecoidea

Family Cercopithecidae Members of the Cercopithecidae family are called cercopithecids, or colloquially Old World monkeys, and include baboons, colobuses, guenons, lutungs, macaques, and other types of monkeys. Cercopithecidae comprises 158 extant species, divided into 23 genera. These genera are grouped into two subfamilies: Cercopithecinae, or cercopithecine monkeys, containing baboon, guenon, macaque, and other monkey species; and Colobinae, or leaf-eating monkeys, containing colobus, lutung, and other monkey species.

Superfamily Hominoidea

Family Hominidae Members of the Hominidae family are hominids, or colloquially great apes, and include gorillas, chimpanzees, orangutans, and humans. Hominoidae comprises eight extant species, divided into four genera. These genera are grouped into two subfamilies: Homininae, or African hominids, containing gorillas, chimpanzees, bonobos, and humans; and Ponginae, or Asian hominids, containing orangutans.

Family Hylobatidae Members of the Hylobatidae family are hylobatids, or colloquially gibbons. Hylobatidae comprises 19 extant species, divided into four genera.

Parvorder Platyrrhines

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Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with List of primates

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what List of primates claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In biology, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to List of primates before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about List of primates ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of List of primates

In research: List of primates appears in biology research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses List of primates in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: List of primates is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Lists of animal genera, Lists of primates, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for List of primates outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

How to study List of primates in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what List of primates means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
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Frequently asked questions

What is List of primates in simple terms?

Primates is a diverse order of placental mammals which includes monkeys, lemurs, galagos, lorisids, tarsiers, and apes (including humans). Members of this order are called primates.

Why does List of primates matter?

Because it connects several biology ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study List of primates?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on List of primates.