Prehistoric primate genera

Australopithecus (, ; or , , ) is a genus of early hominins that existed in Africa during the Pliocene and Early Pleistocene. The genera Homo (which includes modern humans), Paranthropus, and Kenyanthropus evolved from some Australopithecus species. Australopithecus is a member of the subtribe Australopithecina, which sometimes also includes Ardipithecus, though the term "australopithecine" is sometimes used to refer only to members of Australopithecus. Species include A. garhi, A. africanus, A. sediba, A. afarensis, A. anamensis, A. bahrelghazali, and A. deyiremeda. Debate exists as to whethe

Paranthropus is a genus of extinct hominin which contains two widely accepted species: P. robustus and P. boisei. However, the validity of Paranthropus is contested, and it is sometimes considered to be synonymous with Australopithecus. They are also referred to as the robust australopithecines. They lived between approximately 2.9 and at least 1 million years ago (mya) from the end of the Pliocene to the Middle Pleistocene.

Ardipithecus is a genus of an extinct hominine that lived during the Late Miocene and Early Pliocene epochs in the Afar Depression, Ethiopia. Originally described as one of the earliest ancestors of humans after they diverged from the last common ancestor shared with chimpanzees, the relation of this genus to human ancestors and whether it is a hominin is now a matter of debate. Two fossil species are described in the literature: A. ramidus, which lived about 4.4 million years ago during the early Pliocene, and A. kadabba, dated to approximately 5.6 million years ago (late Miocene).

Sivapithecus () (syn: Ramapithecus) is a genus of extinct apes. Fossil remains of animals now assigned to this genus, dated from 12.2 million years old in the Miocene, have been found since the 19th century in the Sivalik Hills of the Indian subcontinent as well as in Kutch. Any one of the species in this genus may have been the ancestor to the modern orangutans.

Extinct genus of primates

Dryopithecus is a genus of extinct great apes from the middle–late Miocene boundary of Europe 12.5 to 11.1 million years ago (mya). Since its discovery in 1856, the genus has been subject to taxonomic turmoil, with numerous new species being described from single remains based on minute differences amongst each other, and the fragmentary nature of the holotype specimen makes differentiating remains difficult. There is currently only one uncontested species, the type species D. fontani, though there may be more. The genus is placed into the tribe Dryopithecini, which is either an offshoot of or

Megaladapis, informally known as the koala lemur, is an extinct genus of lemurs belonging to the family Megaladapidae, consisting of three species that once inhabited the island of Madagascar. The largest measured between in length.

Purgatorius is an extinct genus of eutherian mammal from the early Paleocene epoch of western North America. It is typically believed to be the earliest example of a primate or protoprimate (a primatomorph precursor to the Plesiadapiformes), dating to nearly as old as 66 million years ago.

Ouranopithecus is a genus of extinct Eurasian great ape represented by two species, Ouranopithecus macedoniensis, a late Miocene (9.6–8.7 mya) hominoid from Greece and Ouranopithecus turkae, also from the late Miocene (8.7–7.4 mya) of Turkey.

Propliopithecus is an extinct genus of primate.

Kenyanthropus ('man from Kenya') is a genus of extinct hominin identified from the Lomekwi site by Lake Turkana, Kenya, dated to 3.3 to 3.2 million years ago during the Middle Pliocene. It contains one species, K. platyops, but may also include the two-million-year-old Homo rudolfensis, or K. rudolfensis. Before its naming in 2001, Australopithecus afarensis was widely regarded as the only australopithecine to exist during the Middle Pliocene, but Kenyanthropus evinces a greater diversity than once acknowledged. Kenyanthropus is most recognisable by an unusually flat face and small teeth for s

Lufengpithecus (from Lufeng County, and Ancient Greek πίθηκος (píthēkos), meaning "ape, monkey") is an extinct genus of ape, known from the Late Miocene of East Asia. It is known from thousands of dental remains and a few skulls and probably weighed about . It contains three species: L. lufengensis, L. hudienensis and L. keiyuanensis. Lufengpithecus lufengensis is from the Late Miocene found in China, named after the Lufeng site and dated around 6.2 Ma. Lufengpithecus is either thought to be the sister group to Ponginae, or the sister to the clade containing Ponginae and Homininae.

Khoratpithecus is an extinct genus of pongin primates that lived during the Late Miocene (7–9 million years ago) in Myanmar and Thailand.

Mesopithecus ("middle monkey" for being between Hylobates and Semnopithecus in build) is an extinct genus of Old World monkey belonging to the subfamily Colobinae that lived in Eurasia during the Late Miocene and Pliocene epochs, around 8.2-2.6 million years ago. == Description == Mesopithecus had a body length of about , possessing a slender body with long, muscular limbs and flexible fingers.

Archaeolemur is an extinct genus of subfossil lemurs known from the Quaternary of Madagascar. Archaeolemur is one of the most common and well-known of the extinct giant lemurs as hundreds of its bones have been discovered in fossil deposits across the island. It was larger than any extant lemur, with a body mass of approximately , and is commonly reconstructed as the most frugivorous and terrestrial of the fossil Malagasy primates. Colloquially known as a "monkey lemur," Archaeolemur has often been compared with anthropoids, specifically the cercopithecines, due to various morphological conver

Notharctus is a genus of adapiform primate that lived in North America and Europe during the early to middle Eocene. left|thumb|N. tenebrosus (left) compared to Plesiadapis|Plesiadapis cookei (right), a plesiadapiform. Both come from [[Eocene Wyoming, though the latter is slightly geologically older (Museum of Natural Sciences, Brussels).]] The body form of Notharctus is similar to that of modern rats. Its fingers were elongated for clamping onto branches, including the development of a thumb. Its spine is flexible and the animal was about in length, excluding the long tail.

Pachylemur is an extinct, giant lemur most closely related to the ruffed lemurs of genus Varecia. Two species are known, Pachylemur insignis and Pachylemur jullyi, although there is some doubt as to whether or not they may actually be the same species. Pachylemur is sometimes referred to as the giant ruffed lemur, because although it and the living ruffed lemurs had similar teeth and skeletons, Pachylemur was more robust and as much as three to four times larger. DNA studies have confirmed a sister group relationship between these two types of lemur. Like living ruffed lemurs, Pachylemur speci

Teilhardina (, ) is an extinct marmoset-like omomyid primate that lived in Europe, North America and Asia during the Early Eocene epoch, about 56-47 million years ago. The paleontologist George Gaylord Simpson named it after the French paleontologist, Jesuit and philosopher Teilhard de Chardin.

Eosimias is a genus of early primates, first discovered and identified in 1999 from fossils collected in the Shanghuang fissure-fillings of Liyang, the southern city of Jiangsu Province, China. It is a part of the family Eosimiidae, and includes three known species: Eosimias sinensis, Eosimias centennicus, and Eosimias dawsonae. It provides us with a glimpse of a primate skeleton similar to that of the common ancestor of the Haplorhini (including all simians). The name Eosimias is designed to mean "dawn monkey", from Greek eos "dawn" and Latin simius "monkey".

Mesopropithecus is an extinct genus of small to medium-sized lemur, or strepsirrhine primate, from Madagascar that includes three species, M. dolichobrachion, M. globiceps, and M. pithecoides. Together with Palaeopropithecus, Archaeoindris, and Babakotia, it is part of the sloth lemur family (Palaeopropithecidae). Once thought to be an indriid because its skull is similar to that of living sifakas, a recently discovered postcranial skeleton shows Mesopropithecus had longer forelimbs than hindlimbs—a distinctive trait shared by sloth lemurs but not by indriids. However, as it had

Palaeopropithecus is a recently extinct genus of large sloth lemurs from Madagascar related to living lemur species found there today. Three species are known, Palaeopropithecus ingens, P. maximus, and P. kelyus. Radiocarbon dates indicate that they may have survived until around 1300–1620 CE. Malagasy legends of the tretretretre or tratratratra are thought to refer to P. ingens.

thumb|left|Pliopithecus antiquus jaw seen from above

Nyanzapithecus is an extinct genus of primate from the Middle Miocene of Maboko Island, Nyanza Province, Kenya. This genus is known from four species. It had an average body mass of around .

Adapis is an extinct adapiform primate from the Eocene of Europe. While this genus has traditionally contained five species (A. magnus, A. bruni, A. collinsonae, A. parisiensis, and A. sudrei), recent research has recognized at least six morphotypes that may represent distinct species. Adapis holds the title of the first Eocene primate ever discovered. In 1821, Georges Cuvier, who is considered to be the founding father of paleontology, discovered Adapis in fissure fillings outside of Paris, France. Given its timing and appearance in the fossil record, Cuvier did not recognize the primate affi

Parapithecus is an extinct genus of primate that lived during the Late Eocene-Earliest Oligocene in what is now Egypt. Its members are considered to be basal anthropoids and the genus is closely related to Apidium. There are two known species. They lived about 40 to 33 million years ago.

Griphopithecus is a prehistoric ape from the Miocene of Turkey and Central Europe.

Necrolemur is a small bodied omomyid with body mass estimations ranging from . Necrolemur’s teeth feature broad basins and blunt cusps, suggesting their diet consisted of mostly soft fruit, though examination of microwear patterns suggests that populations from lower latitudes also consumed insects and gums.

Dendropithecus is an extinct genus of apes native to East Africa between 20 and 15 million years ago. Dendropithecus was originally suggested to be related to modern gibbons, based primarily on similarities in size, dentition, and skeletal adaptations. However, further studies have shown that Dendropithecus lacks derived hominoid traits. Instead, the traits shared between this taxon and modern primates are primitive for all catarrhines. Dendropithecus is now considered to be a stem catarrhine, too primitive to be closely related to any modern primates. ==Description== Dendropithecus was a slen

Paralouatta is a platyrrhine genus that currently contains two extinct species of small primates that lived on the island of Cuba.

Europolemur is a genus of adapiform primates that lived in Europe during the middle Eocene.

Karanisia is an extinct genus of strepsirrhine primate from Middle Eocene fossil deposits in Egypt.

Parapapio is a genus of prehistoric baboons closely resembling the forest-dwelling mangabeys. Parapapio is distinguished from other Papio by the lack of an anteorbital drop, thin browridges, absence of maxillary fossae or a sagittal crest and only slight sexual dimorphism.

Cantius is a genus of adapiform primates from the early Eocene of North America and Europe. It is extremely well represented in the fossil record in North America and has been hypothesized to be the direct ancestor of Notharctus in North America. The evolution of Cantius is characterized by a significant increase in body mass that nearly tripled in size. The earliest species were considered small-sized and weighed in around , while the later occurring species were considered medium-sized and likely weighed in around . Though significantly smaller, the fossil remains discovered of the various s

Hispanopithecus is a genus of apes that inhabited Europe during the Miocene epoch. It was first identified in a 1944 paper by J. F. Villalta and M. Crusafont in . Anthropologists disagree as to whether Hispanopithecus belongs to the subfamily Ponginae (most closely related to modern orangutans) or Homininae (most closely related to gorillas, chimpanzees, and humans).

Smilodectes is a genus of adapiform primate that lived in North America during the middle Eocene. It possesses a post-orbital bar and grasping thumbs and toes. Smilodectes has a small cranium size and the foramen magnum was located at the back of the skull, on the occipital bone.

Dolichocebus is an extinct New World monkey genus that lived in Argentine Patagonia (Sarmiento Formation) from about 21 to 17.5 million years ago during the Early Miocene (Colhuehuapian in the SALMA classification). The type species is D. gaimanensis.

Protopithecus is an extinct genus of large New World monkey that lived during the Pleistocene. Fossils have been found in the Toca da Boa Vista cave of Brazil, as well as other locales in the country. Fossils of another large, but less robust ateline monkey, Caipora, were also discovered in Toca da Boa Vista.

Leptadapis is an extinct genus of adapiform primate that lived in Europe during the middle Eocene. Fossils of the genus have been found in the Escanilla Formation of Spain, at the sites of La Bouffie and Perrière in France, and at Egerkingen in Switzerland.

Pronycticebus was a genus of adapiform primates that lived during the early to middle Eocene. It is represented by Pronycticebus gaudryi, from the Quercy Phosphorites Formation of France. A second species, P. neglectus, was moved to its own genus Godinotia in 2000.

Pelycodus (from Ancient Greek πέλυξ (pélux), “bowl” + ὀδούς (odoús), “tooth”) is an extinct genus of adapiform primate that lived during the early Eocene (Wasatchian) period in Europe and North America, particularly Wyoming and New Mexico. It is very closely related to Cantius and may even be its subgenus. It may also have given rise to the Middle Eocene Uintan primate Hesperolemur, although this is controversial. From mass estimates based on the first molar, the two species, P. jarrovii and P. danielsae, weighed 4.5 kg and 6.3 kg respectively and were frugivores with an arboreal, qu

' Micropithecus ' is an extinct genus of primates that lived in East Africa about 19 to 15 million years ago, during the early Miocene. The genus and its type species, Micropithecus clarki, were first scientifically described in 1978.

Ignacius is a genus of extinct mammal from the early Cenozoic era. This genus is present in the fossil record from around 62-33 Ma (late Torrejonian-Chadronian North American Land Mammals Ages). The earliest known specimens of Ignacius come from the Torrejonian of the Fort Union Formation, Wyoming and the most recent known specimens from Ellesmere Island in northern Canada. Ignacius is one of ten genera within the family Paromomyidae, the longest living family of any plesiadapiforms, persisting for around 30 Ma during the Paleocene and Eocene epochs. The analyses of postcranial fossils by pale

Tetonius is a genus of anaptomorphine primate from Eocene Wyoming.

Agerinia is a genus of adapiform primate that lived in Europe during the early Eocene. Fossils have been found in the Grès d'Assignan, Lignites de Soissonais, and Calcare d'Agel Formations of France, the Corçà and Escanilla Formations of Spain and the Kuldana Formation of Pakistan.

Dolichopithecus is an extinct genus of Old World monkey that lived in Europe during the Late Miocene and Pliocene.

Ekembo is an early ape (hominoid) genus found in 17- to 20-million-year-old sediments from the Miocene epoch. Specimens have been found at sites around the ancient Kisingiri volcano in Kenya on Rusinga Island and Mfangano Island in Lake Victoria. The name Ekembo is Suba for "ape" or "monkey".

Protoadapis is a genus of adapiform primate that lived in Europe during the early middle Eocene.

Afrotarsius is a primate found in the Paleogene of Africa. left|thumb|Afrasia from Asia and Afrotarsius from Africa exhibit similar morphology of their teeth and lived in the late middle Eocene, suggesting Stem group|stem simians dispersed from Asia to Africa around that time.|alt=Two molars, one of Afrotarsius (left) and one of Afrasia (right), are compared, with an Eocene map of the globe showing where each came from. In the lower left, a life reconstruction of Afrotarsius is shown. The first species to be named, Afrotarsius chatrathi, was named in 1985 on the basis of a single lower jaw fro

Anchomomys is a genus of adapiform primate that lived in Europe and Africa during the middle Eocene.