Mesopithecus

Mesopithecus; Temporal range: Late Miocene–Late Pliocene PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N
	Skeleton
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Primates
Suborder:	Haplorhini
Infraorder:	Simiiformes
Family:	Cercopithecidae
Subfamily:	Colobinae
Genus:	†Mesopithecus; Wagner, 1839
Species
	Mesopithecus monspessulanus; Gervais 1859; Mesopithecus pentelici ; Wagner 1839 (type);

Mesopithecus ("middle monkey" for being between Hylobates and Semnopithecus in build) is an extinct genus of Old World monkey that lived in Europe and Asia 7 to 5 million years ago.^[1]^[2]^[3] Mesopithecus resembled a modern macaque, with a body length of about 40 centimetres (16 in). It was adapted to both walking and climbing, possessing a slender body with long, muscular limbs and flexible fingers. Its teeth suggest that it primarily ate soft leaves and fruit.^[4] It was once thought that these extinct monkeys might be an ancestor of the grey langur, but a study in 2004^[5] suggested that they are more closely related to the snub-nosed monkeys and doucs.

Gallery

Mesopithecus pentelici skulls
Skeletal restoration

References

^ "Fossils of 6.4-Million-Year-Old Monkey Found in China". sci-news. Archived from the original on 2023-06-26.
^ Xueping Ji, Dionisios Youlatos, Nina G. Jablonski, Ruliang Pan, Chunxia Zhang, Pei Li, Min Tang, Tengsong Yu, Wenqi Li, Chenglong Deng, Song Li (2020). "Oldest colobine calcaneus from East Asia (Zhaotong, Yunnan, China)". Journal of Human Evolution. 147 (102866). doi:10.1016/j.jhevol.2020.102866.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^ Jablonski, Nina G.; et al. (6 August 2020). "Mesopithecus pentelicus from Zhaotong, China, the easternmost representative of a widespread Miocene cercopithecoid species". Journal of Human Evolution. 145: 102851. doi:10.1016/j.jhevol.2020.102851. PMID 32771770.
^ Palmer, D., ed. (1999). The Marshall Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals. London: Marshall Editions. p. 289. ISBN 1-84028-152-9.
^ Pan, Ruliang; Groves, Colin; Oxnard, Charles (2004). "Relationships between the fossil colobine Mesopithecus pentelicus and extant cercopithecoids, based on dental metrics" (PDF). American Journal of Primatology. 62 (4): 287–299. doi:10.1002/ajp.20022. PMID 15085533. S2CID 6688467. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-07-27. Retrieved 2009-01-26.

External links

"Rare Mesopithecus skull unearthed in Chalkidiki". Anaweb. Archived from the original on 2006-10-07.

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[1] "Fossils of 6.4-Million-Year-Old Monkey Found in China". sci-news. Archived from the original on 2023-06-26.

[2] Xueping Ji, Dionisios Youlatos, Nina G. Jablonski, Ruliang Pan, Chunxia Zhang, Pei Li, Min Tang, Tengsong Yu, Wenqi Li, Chenglong Deng, Song Li (2020). "Oldest colobine calcaneus from East Asia (Zhaotong, Yunnan, China)". Journal of Human Evolution. 147 (102866). doi:10.1016/j.jhevol.2020.102866.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)

[JHE-20200901-3] Jablonski, Nina G.; et al. (6 August 2020). "Mesopithecus pentelicus from Zhaotong, China, the easternmost representative of a widespread Miocene cercopithecoid species". Journal of Human Evolution. 145: 102851. doi:10.1016/j.jhevol.2020.102851. PMID 32771770.

[EoDP-4] Palmer, D., ed. (1999). The Marshall Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals. London: Marshall Editions. p. 289. ISBN 1-84028-152-9.

[5] Pan, Ruliang; Groves, Colin; Oxnard, Charles (2004). "Relationships between the fossil colobine Mesopithecus pentelicus and extant cercopithecoids, based on dental metrics" (PDF). American Journal of Primatology. 62 (4): 287–299. doi:10.1002/ajp.20022. PMID 15085533. S2CID 6688467. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-07-27. Retrieved 2009-01-26.