Zoology 365

Biology of Mammals

Spring Semester, 2006

Terri McElhinny- Michigan State University
Words of the Week- Primates

Ischial callosities: hairless pads of thick skin on the rump, which may be a functional adaptation for sitting


Platyrrhine: having a broad, flat nose with a wide, flat space between the nostrils


Catarrhine: having a slender nose with the nostrils placed close together


Tritubercular: teeth with 3 cusps (therefore triangular in shape)


Bilophodont: teeth with 2 lophs, ie the four cusps have been joined into 2 ridges


Brachiator: a primate that locomotes using just its arms by swinging through the trees; arms are elongated and thumbs are reduced


Folivorous: leaf-eater


Stereoscopic vision: overlapping fields of view give the animal three-dimensional vision, depth perception


Post-orbital plate: the post-orbital bar is expanded into a plate that completely encloses the orbit