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Sefczek TM, McGraw WS, Faralahy DM, Manampisoa GM, Louis EE. Locomotion of an adult female and juvenile male aye-aye (Daubentonia madagascariensis) in Torotorofotsy, Madagascar. Am J Primatol 2021; 83:e23267. [PMID: 33956356 DOI: 10.1002/ajp.23267] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2020] [Revised: 03/22/2021] [Accepted: 04/23/2021] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Aye-ayes (Daubentonia madagascariensis) locate and acquire invertebrates from within woody substrates at all levels of the rainforest; yet how their locomotion helps them accommodate this diet has not been explored in detail. We studied the locomotor behavior of an adult female (N = 1,085) and juvenile male (N = 708) aye-aye in the undisturbed forest of Torotorofotsy, Madagascar from May to December 2017. We used bout sampling to record locomotion during foraging and travel of the two radio-collared individuals. We used χ 2 tests to compare overall locomotion, travel, and foraging, as well as strata and support use. We performed a correspondence analysis to examine relationships between individual behaviors, strata, and support types. Leaping accounted for 47.9% and 50.1% of all locomotor activity in the adult female and juvenile male, respectively. Leaping was the most common behavior during travel in both individuals (59.2% and 53.9%, respectively), whereas head-first descent was most frequent during foraging (35.0% and 48.0%, respectively). For all three locomotor categories, the main canopy (40.3%-79.6%) was used most frequently and trunks were the most frequently used support type (50.7%-60.0%). There is a strong association between strata and support use overall and during travel. Quadrupedal walking was significantly associated with the main canopy, as was head-first descent with the low canopy. Our analysis demonstrates that aye-ayes use a variety of locomotor behaviors to forage for invertebrates. Aye-ayes' ability to repurpose their positional repertoire to acquire other resources in degraded forests should not obscure the importance of invertebrates to this species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Timothy M Sefczek
- Department of Anthropology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA.,Center for Conservation and Research, Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium, Omaha, Nebraska, USA
| | - W Scott McGraw
- Department of Anthropology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
| | | | | | - Edward E Louis
- Center for Conservation and Research, Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium, Omaha, Nebraska, USA.,Madagascar Biodiversity Partnership, Antananarivo, Madagascar
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Püschel TA, Marcé-Nogué J, Chamberlain AT, Yoxall A, Sellers WI. The biomechanical importance of the scaphoid-centrale fusion during simulated knuckle-walking and its implications for human locomotor evolution. Sci Rep 2020; 10:3526. [PMID: 32103129 PMCID: PMC7044280 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-60590-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2019] [Accepted: 02/10/2020] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Inferring the locomotor behaviour of the last common ancestor (LCA) of humans and African apes is still a divisive issue. An African great-ape-like ancestor using knuckle-walking is still the most parsimonious hypothesis for the LCA, despite diverse conflicting lines of evidence. Crucial to this hypothesis is the role of the centrale in the hominoid wrist, since the fusion of this bone with the scaphoid is among the clearest morphological synapomorphies of African apes and hominins. However, the exact functional significance of this fusion remains unclear. We address this question by carrying out finite element simulations of the hominoid wrist during knuckle-walking by virtually generating fused and unfused morphologies in a sample of hominoids. Finite element analysis was applied to test the hypothesis that a fused scaphoid-centrale better withstands the loads derived from knuckle-walking. The results show that fused morphologies display lower stress values, hence supporting a biomechanical explanation for the fusion as a functional adaptation for knuckle-walking. This functional interpretation for the fusion contrasts with the current inferred positional behaviour of the earliest hominins, thus suggesting that this morphology was probably retained from an LCA that exhibited knuckle-walking as part of its locomotor repertoire and that was probably later exapted for other functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas A Püschel
- Primate Models for Behavioural Evolution Lab, Institute of Cognitive and Evolutionary Anthropology, School of Anthropology, University of Oxford, 64 Banbury Road, OX2 6PN, Oxford, United Kingdom.
| | - Jordi Marcé-Nogué
- Center of Natural History (CeNak), Universität Hamburg, Martin-Luther-King-Platz 3, Hamburg, 20146, Germany
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/Columnes s/n, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Andrew T Chamberlain
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Manchester, M13 9PL, Manchester, United Kingdom
| | - Alaster Yoxall
- Art and Design Research Centre, Sheffield Hallam University, Sheffield, United Kingdom
| | - William I Sellers
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Manchester, M13 9PL, Manchester, United Kingdom
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Orr CM. Kinematics of the anthropoid os centrale and the functional consequences of scaphoid-centrale fusion in African apes and hominins. J Hum Evol 2017; 114:102-117. [PMID: 29447753 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2017.10.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2017] [Revised: 09/21/2017] [Accepted: 10/05/2017] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
In most primates, the os centrale is interposed between the scaphoid, trapezoid, trapezium, and head of the capitate, thus constituting a component of the wrist's midcarpal complex. Scaphoid-centrale fusion is among the clearest morphological synapomorphies of African apes and hominins. Although it might facilitate knuckle-walking by increasing the rigidity and stability of the radial side of the wrist, the exact functional significance of scaphoid-centrale fusion is unclear. If fusion acts to produce a more rigid radial wrist that stabilizes the hand and limits shearing stresses, then in taxa with a free centrale, it should anchor ligaments that check extension and radial deviation, but exhibit motion independent of the scaphoid. Moreover, because the centrale sits between the scaphoid and capitate (a major stabilizing articulation), scaphoid-centrale mobility should correlate with scaphocapitate mobility in extension and radial deviation. To test these hypotheses, the centrale's ligamentous binding was investigated via dissection in Pongo and Papio, and the kinematics of the centrale were quantified in a cadaveric sample of anthropoids (Pongo sp., Ateles geoffroyi, Colobus guereza, Macaca mulatta, and Papio anubis) using a computed-tomography-based method to track wrist-bone motion. Results indicate that the centrale rotates freely relative to the scaphoid in all taxa. However, centrale mobility is only correlated with scaphocapitate mobility during extension in Pongo-possibly due to differences in overall wrist configuration between apes and monkeys. If an extant ape-like wrist characterized early ancestors of African apes and hominins, then scaphoid-centrale fusion would have increased midcarpal rigidity in extension relative to the primitive condition. Although biomechanically consistent with a knuckle-walking hominin ancestor, this assumes that the trait evolved specifically for that biological role, which must be squared with contradictory interpretations of extant and fossil hominoid morphology. Regardless of its original adaptive significance, scaphoid-centrale fusion likely presented a constraint on early hominin midcarpal mobility.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caley M Orr
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO, USA; Department of Anthropology, University of Colorado Denver, Denver, CO, USA.
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Godfrey LR, Muldoon KM. Elwyn Simons: Opening windows into Madagascar's past. Evol Anthropol 2017. [PMID: 28627783 DOI: 10.1002/evan.21518] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Laurie R Godfrey
- Department of Anthropology, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA, 01003
| | - Kathleen M Muldoon
- Department of Anatomy, Arizona College of Osteopathic Medicine, Midwestern University, 19555 N. 59th Avenue, Glendale, AZ, 85308
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Marchi D, Ruff CB, Capobianco A, Rafferty KL, Habib MB, Patel BA. The locomotion ofBabakotia radofilaiinferred from epiphyseal and diaphyseal morphology of the humerus and femur. J Morphol 2016; 277:1199-218. [DOI: 10.1002/jmor.20569] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2015] [Revised: 04/06/2016] [Accepted: 05/27/2016] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Damiano Marchi
- Department of Biology; University of Pisa; Pisa 56126 Italy
- Evolutionary Studies Institute, University of the Witwatersrand; Johannesburg WITS 2050 South Africa
| | - Christopher B. Ruff
- Center for Functional Anatomy and Evolution, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine; Baltimore Maryland 21111
| | - Alessio Capobianco
- Department of Biology; University of Pisa; Pisa 56126 Italy
- Scuola Normale Superiore; Pisa 56126 Italy
| | - Katherine L. Rafferty
- Department of Orthodontics School of Dentistry; University of Washington; Seattle Washington 98195
| | - Michael B. Habib
- Department of Cell and Neurobiology Keck School of Medicine; University of Southern California; Los Angeles California 90033
| | - Biren A. Patel
- Evolutionary Studies Institute, University of the Witwatersrand; Johannesburg WITS 2050 South Africa
- Department of Cell and Neurobiology Keck School of Medicine; University of Southern California; Los Angeles California 90033
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Richmond BG, Roach NT, Ostrofsky KR. Evolution of the Early Hominin Hand. DEVELOPMENTS IN PRIMATOLOGY: PROGRESS AND PROSPECTS 2016. [DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4939-3646-5_18] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
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Patterns, Variability, and Flexibility of Hand Posture During Locomotion in Primates. DEVELOPMENTS IN PRIMATOLOGY: PROGRESS AND PROSPECTS 2016. [DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4939-3646-5_13] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
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Godfrey LR, Granatosky MC, Jungers WL. The Hands of Subfossil Lemurs. DEVELOPMENTS IN PRIMATOLOGY: PROGRESS AND PROSPECTS 2016. [DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4939-3646-5_15] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/03/2022]
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Proconsul heseloni distal radial and ulnar epiphyses from the Kaswanga Primate Site, Rusinga Island, Kenya. J Hum Evol 2015; 80:17-33. [PMID: 25577018 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2014.06.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2012] [Revised: 06/12/2014] [Accepted: 06/12/2014] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
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Arias-Martorell J, Alba DM, Potau JM, Bello-Hellegouarch G, Pérez-Pérez A. Morphological affinities of the proximal humerus of Epipliopithecus vindobonensis and Pliopithecus antiquus: Suspensory inferences based on a 3D geometric morphometrics approach. J Hum Evol 2015; 80:83-95. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2014.08.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2014] [Revised: 08/20/2014] [Accepted: 08/20/2014] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
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Lumbar vertebral morphology of flying, gliding, and suspensory mammals: Implications for the locomotor behavior of the subfossil lemurs Palaeopropithecus and Babakotia. J Hum Evol 2014; 75:40-52. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2014.06.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 63] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2013] [Revised: 03/23/2014] [Accepted: 06/11/2014] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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Gommery D, Ramanivosoa B. Les lémuriens subfossiles dans le Nord-Ouest de Madagascar, du terrain à la diffusion des connaissances ou 15 ans de recherches franco-malgaches1. REVUE DE PRIMATOLOGIE 2011. [DOI: 10.4000/primatologie.670] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
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Nouvelle approche métrique de l'épaule du genre Archaeolemur : caractéristiques morphologiques et myologiques1. REVUE DE PRIMATOLOGIE 2011. [DOI: 10.4000/primatologie.778] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
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Williams SA. Morphological integration and the evolution of knuckle-walking. J Hum Evol 2010; 58:432-40. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2010.03.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2009] [Revised: 03/04/2010] [Accepted: 03/10/2010] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
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Muldoon KM, de Blieux DD, Simons EL, Chatrath PS. The Subfossil Occurrence and Paleoecological Significance of Small Mammals at Ankilitelo Cave, Southwestern Madagascar. J Mammal 2009. [DOI: 10.1644/08-mamm-a-242.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
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New hand bones of Hadropithecus stenognathus: implications for the paleobiology of the Archaeolemuridae. J Hum Evol 2008; 54:405-13. [PMID: 18068213 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2007.09.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2007] [Revised: 08/25/2007] [Accepted: 09/18/2007] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
A partial, associated skeleton of Hadropithecus stenognathus (AHA-I) was discovered in 2003 at Andrahomana Cave in southeastern Madagascar. Among the postcranial elements found were the first hand bones (right scaphoid, right hamate, left first metacarpal, and right and left fifth metacarpals) attributed to this rare subfossil lemur. These hand bones were compared to those of extant strepsirrhines and catarrhines in order to infer the positional adaptations of Hadropithecus, and they were compared to those of Archaeolemur in order to assess variation in hand morphology among archaeolemurids. The scaphoid tubercle does not project palmarly as in suspensory and climbing taxa, and the hamate has no hook at all (just a small tubercle), which also points to a poorly developed carpal tunnel. There is a distinctive, radioulnarly directed "spiral" facet for articulation with the triquetrum that is most similar in orientation to that of more terrestrial primates (i.e., Lemur catta, Papio, and Gorilla). The first metacarpal is very reduced and represents only 48% of the length of metacarpal V, as in Archaeolemur, which suggests that pollical grasping of arboreal supports was not important. Compared to Archaeolemur, the shaft of metacarpal V is gracile, and the head has no dorsal ridge and lacks characteristics functionally associated with digitigrade, extended metacarpophalangeal joint postures. Proximally, the articular facet for the hamate is oriented more dorsally. Thus, the carpometacarpal joint V appears to have a distinctive hyperextended set, which has no analog among living or extinct primates. The carpals of Hadropithecus are diagnostic of a pronograde, arboreal and terrestrial (although not digitigrade) locomotor repertoire that typifies Lemur catta and some Old World monkeys. No clinging, suspensory, or climbing specializations that characterize indriids or lorises can be found in the hand of this subfossil lemur. The hand of Hadropithecus likely had similar ranges of movement at the radiocarpal and midcarpal joints as of those of pronograde primates, such as lemurids, for which the hand is held in a more extended, pronated, and neutral (i.e., showing less ulnar deviation) position during locomotion in comparison to that of vertical clingers or slow climbers. Although highly autapomorphic, the hand of Hadropithecus resembles that of its sister taxon, Archaeolemur, in having a very reduced pollex and an articular facet on the scaphoid for a sizeable prepollex. These unusual hand features reinforce the monophyly of the Archaeolemuridae.
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Orlando L, Calvignac S, Schnebelen C, Douady CJ, Godfrey LR, Hänni C. DNA from extinct giant lemurs links archaeolemurids to extant indriids. BMC Evol Biol 2008; 8:121. [PMID: 18442367 PMCID: PMC2386821 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2148-8-121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2007] [Accepted: 04/28/2008] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Although today 15% of living primates are endemic to Madagascar, their diversity was even greater in the recent past since dozens of extinct species have been recovered from Holocene excavation sites. Among them were the so-called "giant lemurs" some of which weighed up to 160 kg. Although extensively studied, the phylogenetic relationships between extinct and extant lemurs are still difficult to decipher, mainly due to morphological specializations that reflect ecology more than phylogeny, resulting in rampant homoplasy. RESULTS Ancient DNA recovered from subfossils recently supported a sister relationship between giant "sloth" lemurs and extant indriids and helped to revise the phylogenetic position of Megaladapis edwardsi among lemuriformes, but several taxa - such as the Archaeolemuridae - still await analysis. We therefore used ancient DNA technology to address the phylogenetic status of the two archaeolemurid genera (Archaeolemur and Hadropithecus). Despite poor DNA preservation conditions in subtropical environments, we managed to recover 94- to 539-bp sequences for two mitochondrial genes among 5 subfossil samples. CONCLUSION This new sequence information provides evidence for the proximity of Archaeolemur and Hadropithecus to extant indriids, in agreement with earlier assessments of their taxonomic status (Primates, Indrioidea) and in contrast to recent suggestions of a closer relationship to the Lemuridae made on the basis of analyses of dental developmental and postcranial characters. These data provide new insights into the evolution of the locomotor apparatus among lemurids and indriids.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ludovic Orlando
- Université de Lyon, Institut de Génomique Fonctionnelle de Lyon, Institut Fédératif Biosciences Gerland Lyon Sud, Université Lyon 1, CNRS, INRA, Ecole Normale Supérieure de Lyon, 69364 Lyon Cédex 07, France.
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SALTON JUSTINEA, SARGIS ERICJ. Evolutionary morphology of the Tenrecoidea (Mammalia) carpal complex. Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2008. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1095-8312.2007.00908.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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Kivell TL, Begun DR. Frequency and timing of scaphoid-centrale fusion in hominoids. J Hum Evol 2007; 52:321-40. [PMID: 17156819 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2006.10.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2006] [Revised: 10/04/2006] [Accepted: 10/15/2006] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Fusion between the os centrale and the scaphoid has played a central role in many functional and phylogenetic interpretations of hominoid evolution. In particular, scaphoid-centrale fusion shared among African apes and humans has been interpreted as an adaptation in knuckle-walkers, an exaptation in hominins, and has been offered as evidence for a knuckle-walking origin of bipedalism. However, discrepancies in the literature concerning the taxa in which this scaphoid-centrale fusion occurs, as well as the timing and/or frequency of this fusion, have confounded the significance of this trait. This study provides an historical review of the literature on scaphoid-centrale fusion in primates and the first formal investigation into the timing and frequency of this character among primates, with a focus on extant hominoids. Results indicate that there is a significant difference in the timing and frequency of scaphoid-centrale fusion in African apes and humans compared to Asian apes, suggesting that prenatal or early postnatal fusion among hominines is a synapomorphy. Scaphoid-centrale fusion does not occur randomly within primates. Instead, only Homininae and some members of Lemuroidea show consistent and ontogenetically early fusion of these carpals. The consistent occurrence of this trait within only two primate clades and a clear heterochronic trend in timing and frequency of scaphoid-centrale fusion among hominines suggest that this character is primarily phylogenetically controlled. We could not falsify the hypothesis that scaphoid-centrale fusion in African apes is indeed related to midcarpal stability in knuckle-walking, but neither were we able to find direct biomechanical or kinematic evidence to support this hypothesis. A more definitive answer to the question of the functional significance of scaphoid-centrale fusion will have to await more detailed analyses of great ape wrist kinematics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tracy L Kivell
- Department of Anthropology, University of Toronto, 100 St. George Street, Toronto, Ontario M5S 3G3, Canada.
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Godfrey LR, Jungers WL, Burney DA, Vasey N, Wheeler W, Lemelin P, Shapiro LJ, Schwartz GT, King SJ, Ramarolahy MF, Raharivony LL, Randria GFN. New discoveries of skeletal elements of Hadropithecus stenognathus from Andrahomana Cave, southeastern Madagascar. J Hum Evol 2006; 51:395-410. [PMID: 16911817 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2006.04.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2006] [Accepted: 04/24/2006] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
Abstract
Remains of what appears to be a single, subadult Hadropithecus stenognathus were recovered from a previously unexcavated site at Andrahomana Cave (southeastern Madagascar). Specimens found comprise isolated teeth and cranial fragments (including the frontal processes of the orbits), as well as a partial postcranial skeleton. They include the first associated fore- and hind-limb bones, confirming the hind-limb attributions made by Godfrey and co-workers in 1997, and refuting earlier attributions by Lamberton in 1937/1938. Of particular interest here are the previously unknown elements, including a sacrum, other vertebrae and ribs, some hand bones, and the distal epiphysis of a femur. We briefly discuss the functional implications of previously unknown elements. Hadropithecus displayed a combination of characters reminiscent of lemurids, others more like those of the larger-bodied Old World monkeys, and still others more like those of African apes. Yet other characteristics appear unique. Lemurid-like postcranial characteristics may be primitive for the Archaeolemuridae. Hadropithecus diverges from the Lemuridae in the direction of Archaeolemur, but more extremely so. Thus, for example, it exhibits a stronger reduction in the size of the hamulus of the hamate, greater anteroposterior compression of the femoral shaft, and greater asymmetry of the femoral condyles. Nothing in its postcranial anatomy signals a close relationship to either the Indriidae or the Palaeopropithecidae.
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Affiliation(s)
- L R Godfrey
- Department of Anthropology, University of Massachusetts-Amherst, Amherst MA 01003, USA.
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Jungers WL, Lemelin P, Godfrey LR, Wunderlich RE, Burney DA, Simons EL, Chatrath PS, James HF, Randria GFN. The hands and feet of Archaeolemur: metrical affinities and their functional significance. J Hum Evol 2006; 49:36-55. [PMID: 15989943 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2005.03.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2004] [Revised: 03/03/2005] [Accepted: 03/03/2005] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
Recent expeditions to Madagascar have recovered abundant skeletal remains of Archaeolemur, one of the so-called "monkey lemurs" known from Holocene deposits scattered across the island. These new skeletons are sufficiently complete to permit reassembly of entire hands and feet--postcranial elements crucial to drawing inferences about substrate preferences and positional behavior. Univariate and multivariate analysis of intrinsic hand and foot proportions, phalangeal indices, relative pollex and hallux lengths, phalangeal curvature, and distal phalangeal shape reveal a highly derived and unique morphology for an extinct strepsirrhine that diverges dramatically from that of living lemurs and converges in some respects on that of Old World monkeys (e.g., mandrills, but not baboons or geladas). The hands and feet of Archaeolemur are relatively short (extremely so relative to body size); the carpus and tarsus are both "long" relative to total hand and foot lengths, respectively; phalangeal indices of both the hands and feet are low; both pollex and hallux are reduced; the apical tufts of the distal phalanges are very broad; and the proximal phalanges are slightly curved (but more so than in baboons). Overall grasping capabilities may have been compromised to some extent, and dexterous handling of small objects seems improbable. Deliberate and noncursorial quadrupedalism was most likely practiced on both the ground and in the trees. A flexible locomotor repertoire in conjunction with a eurytopic trophic adaptation allowed Archaeolemur to inhabit much of Madagascar and may explain why it was one of the latest surviving subfossil lemurs.
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Affiliation(s)
- W L Jungers
- Department of Anatomical Sciences, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794-8081, USA.
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Shapiro LJ, Seiffert CVM, Godfrey LR, Jungers WL, Simons EL, Randria GFN. Morphometric analysis of lumbar vertebrae in extinct Malagasy strepsirrhines. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2006; 128:823-39. [PMID: 16110476 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.20122] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
Previous research on subfossil lemurs has revealed much about the positional behavior of these extinct strepsirrhines, but a thorough quantitative analysis of their vertebral form and function has not been performed. In this study, 156 lumbar vertebrae of Pachylemur, Archaeolemur, Megaladapis, Mesopropithecus, Babakotia, and Palaeopropithecus (11 species in all) were compared to those of 26 species of extant strepsirrhines and haplorhines. Lumbar shape was compared among species, using a principal components analysis (PCA) in conjunction with selected vertebral indices. The first principal component revealed strong separation between Palaeopropithecus at one extreme, and Archaeolemur/Pachylemur at the other, with Babakotia, Mesopropithecus, and Megaladapis in an intermediate position. Palaeopropithecus has markedly shorter spinous processes and wider laminae than do the other subfossil taxa, consistent with sloth-like, inverted suspensory postures. The moderately reduced lumbar spinous processes of Babakotia, Mesopropithecus, and Megaladapis are convergent with those of lorisids and Pongo, reflecting antipronogrady, but a less specialized adaptation than that of Palaeopropithecus. Archaeolemur and Pachylemur share relatively elongated spinous processes, in conjunction with other features (e.g., transverse process orientation and relatively short vertebral bodies) indicative of pronograde, quadrupedal locomotion characterized by reduced agility. All subfossil taxa exhibit adaptations emphasizing lumbar spinal stability (e.g., relatively short vertebral bodies, and transverse processes that are not oriented ventrally); we believe this probably reflects convergent mechanical demands connected to large body size, irrespective of specific locomotor mode. Reconstructions of positional behavior in subfossil lemurs based on lumbar vertebrae are largely consistent with those based on other aspects of the postcrania.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liza J Shapiro
- Department of Anthropology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712, USA
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Orr CM. Knuckle-walking anteater: a convergence test of adaptation for purported knuckle-walking features of African Hominidae. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2005; 128:639-58. [PMID: 15861420 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.20192] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
Appeals to synapomorphic features of the wrist and hand in African apes, early hominins, and modern humans as evidence of knuckle-walking ancestry for the hominin lineage rely on accurate interpretations of those features as adaptations to knuckle-walking locomotion. Because Gorilla, Pan, and Homo share a relatively close common ancestor, the interpretation of such features is confounded somewhat by phylogeny. The study presented here examines the evolution of a similar locomotor regime in New World anteaters (order Xenarthra, family Myrmecophagidae) and uses the terrestrial giant anteater (Myrmecophaga tridactyla) as a convergence test of adaptation for purported knuckle-walking features of the Hominidae. During the stance phase of locomotion, Myrmecophaga transmits loads through flexed digits and a vertical manus, with hyperextension occurring at the metacarpophalangeal joints of the weight-bearing rays. This differs from the locomotion of smaller, arboreal anteaters of outgroup genera Tamandua and Cyclopes that employ extended wrist postures during above-branch quadrupedality. A number of features shared by Myrmecophaga and Pan and Gorilla facilitate load transmission or limit extension, thereby stabilizing the wrist and hand during knuckle-walking, and distinguish these taxa from their respective outgroups. These traits are a distally extended dorsal ridge of the distal radius, proximal expansion of the nonarticular surface of the dorsal capitate, a pronounced articular ridge on the dorsal aspects of the load-bearing metacarpal heads, and metacarpal heads that are wider dorsally than volarly. Only the proximal expansion of the nonarticular area of the dorsal capitate distinguishes knuckle-walkers from digitigrade cercopithecids, but features shared with digitigrade primates might be adaptive to the use of a vertical manus of some sort in the stance phase of terrestrial locomotion. The appearance of capitate nonarticular expansion and the dorsal ridge of the distal radius in the hominin lineage might be indicative of a knuckle-walking ancestry for bipedal hominins if interpreted within the biomechanical and phylogenetic context of hominid locomotor evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caley M Orr
- Department of Anthropology, Institute of Human Origins, and NSF IGERT Program in Neural and Musculoskeletal Adaptation in Form and Function, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona 85287-2402, USA.
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Karanth KP, Delefosse T, Rakotosamimanana B, Parsons TJ, Yoder AD. Ancient DNA from giant extinct lemurs confirms single origin of Malagasy primates. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2005; 102:5090-5. [PMID: 15784742 PMCID: PMC555979 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0408354102] [Citation(s) in RCA: 77] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2004] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The living Malagasy lemurs constitute a spectacular radiation of >50 species that are believed to have evolved from a common ancestor that colonized Madagascar in the early Tertiary period. Yet, at least 15 additional Malagasy primate species, some of which were relative giants, succumbed to extinction within the past 2,000 years. Their existence in Madagascar is recorded predominantly in its Holocene subfossil record. To rigorously test the hypothesis that all endemic Malagasy primates constitute a monophyletic group and to determine the evolutionary relationships among living and extinct taxa, we have conducted an ancient DNA analysis of subfossil species. A total of nine subfossil individuals from the extinct genera Palaeopropithecus and Megaladapis yielded amplifiable DNA. Phylogenetic analysis of cytochrome b sequences derived from these subfossils corroborates the monophyly of endemic Malagasy primates. Our results support the close relationship of sloth lemurs to living indriids, as has been hypothesized on morphological grounds. In contrast, Megaladapis does not show a sister-group relationship with the living genus Lepilemur. Thus, the classification of the latter in the family Megaladapidae is misleading. By correlating the geographic location of subfossil specimens with relative amplification success, we reconfirm the global trend of increased success rates of ancient DNA recovery from nontropical localities.
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Affiliation(s)
- K Praveen Karanth
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, P.O. Box 208105, New Haven, CT 06520, USA
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Richmond BG, Begun DR, Strait DS. Origin of human bipedalism: The knuckle-walking hypothesis revisited. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2002. [DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.10019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 191] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
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King SJ, Godfrey LR, Simons EL. Adaptive and phylogenetic significance of ontogenetic sequences in Archaeolemur, subfossil lemur from Madagascar. J Hum Evol 2001; 41:545-76. [PMID: 11782109 DOI: 10.1006/jhev.2001.0509] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Among the best known of recently extinct Malagasy lemurs is Archaeolemur, which is represented by many hundreds of specimens. The phylogenetic affinities of this taxon are unclear, especially in light of recent preliminary analysis of ancient DNA which does not support its previously accepted close relationship with the living Indridae. We examined the nearly complete skeletons of two adults and one juvenile and other less complete specimens to reconstruct aspects of the ontogeny of Archaeolemur. To compare the development of Archaeolemur to that of living strepsirrhines we collected data on Propithecus verreauxi, Eulemur fulvus, and Lemur catta. Additionally, because Archaeolemur exhibits some morphological convergences with distantly related papionins, we tested for convergence in the developmental patterns of Archaeolemur and Macaca fascicularis. Data include the status of tooth eruption, craniofacial sutural closure, and postcranial epiphyseal fusion, as well as linear measurements. We used discriminant function analysis and other tools to explore ontogenetic similarities and differences. The adaptive and phylogenetic significance of ontogenetic information is discussed. Our analysis shows that Archaeolemur displays a clear strepsirrhine pattern of development with only minor macaque convergences. Among the Strepsirrhini, Archaeolemur is slightly more similar developmentally to E. fulvus and L. catta than to P. verreauxi. Some of the distinctive features of the ontogeny of Archaeolemur may be related to diet, while others bear apparent testimony to a relatively rapid absolute pace of growth and development.
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Affiliation(s)
- S J King
- Department of Anthropology, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Massachusetts 01003-9278, USA.
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