Morphometric variation of extant platyrrhine molars: taxonomic implications for fossil platyrrhines

The phylogenetic position of many fossil platyrrhines with respect to extant ones is not yet clear. Two main hypotheses have been proposed: the layered or successive radiations hypothesis suggests that Patagonian fossils are Middle Miocene stem platyrrhines lacking modern descendants, whereas the lo...

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Main Authors: Mónica Nova Delgado, Jordi Galbany, Alejandro Pérez-Pérez
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: PeerJ Inc. 2016-05-01
Series:PeerJ
Subjects:
Online Access:https://peerj.com/articles/1967.pdf
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author Mónica Nova Delgado
Jordi Galbany
Alejandro Pérez-Pérez
author_facet Mónica Nova Delgado
Jordi Galbany
Alejandro Pérez-Pérez
author_sort Mónica Nova Delgado
collection DOAJ
description The phylogenetic position of many fossil platyrrhines with respect to extant ones is not yet clear. Two main hypotheses have been proposed: the layered or successive radiations hypothesis suggests that Patagonian fossils are Middle Miocene stem platyrrhines lacking modern descendants, whereas the long lineage hypothesis argues for an evolutionary continuity of all fossil platyrrhines with the extant ones. Our geometric morphometric analysis of a 15 landmark-based configuration of platyrrhines’ first and second lower molars suggest that morphological stasis may explain the reduced molar shape variation observed. Platyrrhine lower molar shape might be a primitive retention of the ancestral state affected by strong ecological constraints throughout the radiation of the main platyrrhine families. The Patagonian fossil specimens showed two distinct morphological patterns of lower molars, Callicebus—like and Saguinus—like, which might be the precursors of the extant forms, whereas the Middle Miocene specimens, though showing morphological resemblances with the Patagonian fossils, also displayed new, derived molar patterns, Alouatta—like and Pitheciinae—like, thereby suggesting that despite the overall morphological stasis of molars, phenotypic diversification of molar shape was already settled during the Middle Miocene.
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spelling doaj.art-1177a214bc9f4063920daed1f8937da62023-12-03T01:19:57ZengPeerJ Inc.PeerJ2167-83592016-05-014e196710.7717/peerj.1967Morphometric variation of extant platyrrhine molars: taxonomic implications for fossil platyrrhinesMónica Nova Delgado0Jordi Galbany1Alejandro Pérez-Pérez2Department of Evolutionary Biology, Ecology and Environmental Sciences, Zoology and Physical Anthropology Section, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, SpainDepartment of Evolutionary Biology, Ecology and Environmental Sciences, Zoology and Physical Anthropology Section, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, SpainDepartment of Evolutionary Biology, Ecology and Environmental Sciences, Zoology and Physical Anthropology Section, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, SpainThe phylogenetic position of many fossil platyrrhines with respect to extant ones is not yet clear. Two main hypotheses have been proposed: the layered or successive radiations hypothesis suggests that Patagonian fossils are Middle Miocene stem platyrrhines lacking modern descendants, whereas the long lineage hypothesis argues for an evolutionary continuity of all fossil platyrrhines with the extant ones. Our geometric morphometric analysis of a 15 landmark-based configuration of platyrrhines’ first and second lower molars suggest that morphological stasis may explain the reduced molar shape variation observed. Platyrrhine lower molar shape might be a primitive retention of the ancestral state affected by strong ecological constraints throughout the radiation of the main platyrrhine families. The Patagonian fossil specimens showed two distinct morphological patterns of lower molars, Callicebus—like and Saguinus—like, which might be the precursors of the extant forms, whereas the Middle Miocene specimens, though showing morphological resemblances with the Patagonian fossils, also displayed new, derived molar patterns, Alouatta—like and Pitheciinae—like, thereby suggesting that despite the overall morphological stasis of molars, phenotypic diversification of molar shape was already settled during the Middle Miocene.https://peerj.com/articles/1967.pdfMolar shapePlatyrrhinesGeometric morphometricPhylogeny
spellingShingle Mónica Nova Delgado
Jordi Galbany
Alejandro Pérez-Pérez
Morphometric variation of extant platyrrhine molars: taxonomic implications for fossil platyrrhines
PeerJ
Molar shape
Platyrrhines
Geometric morphometric
Phylogeny
title Morphometric variation of extant platyrrhine molars: taxonomic implications for fossil platyrrhines
title_full Morphometric variation of extant platyrrhine molars: taxonomic implications for fossil platyrrhines
title_fullStr Morphometric variation of extant platyrrhine molars: taxonomic implications for fossil platyrrhines
title_full_unstemmed Morphometric variation of extant platyrrhine molars: taxonomic implications for fossil platyrrhines
title_short Morphometric variation of extant platyrrhine molars: taxonomic implications for fossil platyrrhines
title_sort morphometric variation of extant platyrrhine molars taxonomic implications for fossil platyrrhines
topic Molar shape
Platyrrhines
Geometric morphometric
Phylogeny
url https://peerj.com/articles/1967.pdf
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AT jordigalbany morphometricvariationofextantplatyrrhinemolarstaxonomicimplicationsforfossilplatyrrhines
AT alejandroperezperez morphometricvariationofextantplatyrrhinemolarstaxonomicimplicationsforfossilplatyrrhines