Amphipithecine primates are stem anthropoids: cranial and postcranial evidence.

Since their discovery in 1927, the phylogenetic status of the Myanmar amphipithecines has been highly debated. These fossil primates are recognized either as anthropoids or as adapiform strepsirrhines. This uncertainty was largely the consequence of a limited fossil record consisting mostly of jaw fragments but lacking the critical cranial elements that might resolve this debate.

Phalangeal morphology of Shanghuang fossil primates.

Here, we describe hundreds of isolated phalanges attributed to middle Eocene fossil primates from the Shanghuang fissure-fillings from southern Jiangsu Province, China. Extending knowledge based on previous descriptions of postcranial material from Shanghuang, this sample of primate finger and toe bones includes proximal phalanges, middle phalanges, and over three hundred nail-bearing distal phalanges. Most of the isolated proximal and middle phalanges fall within the range of small-bodied individuals, suggesting an allocation to the smaller haplorhine primates identified at Shanghuang, including eosimiids.

Estimating body size in early primates: The case of Archicebus and Teilhardina.

Obtaining accurate estimations of the body mass of fossil primates has always been a subject of interest in paleoanthropology because mass is an important determinant for so many other aspects of biology, ecology, and life history. This paper focuses on the issues involved in attempting to reconstruct the mass of two early Eocene haplorhine primates, Teilhardina and Archicebus, which pose particular problems due to their small size and temporal and phylogenetic distance from extant primates. In addition to a ranking of variables from more to less useful, the effect of using models of varying taxonomic and size compositions is examined.

Distal phalanges of Eosimias and Hoanghonius.

Seven primate distal phalanges have been identified from two middle Eocene fossil localities (Locality 1 and Nanbaotou) in the Yuanqu Basin, China, providing the first evidence of distal phalangeal morphology in Asian Eocene adapiform and eosimiid primates. The bones are best allocated to the basal anthropoid Eosimias centennicus and to hoanghoniine adapiforms. All distal phalangeal specimens display a morphology consistent with nail-bearing fingers and toes.