Abstract
A RECENT article by Szalay1 could be taken to be a definitive statement of the relationships of two of the earliest known specimens that can possibly be related to the origin of the catarrhine primates, the group which includes Old World monkeys, apes and men. Each of the fossils concerned—Amphipithecus from the late Eocene of Burma and Oligopithecus from the Oligocene exposures in the Fayum, Egypt—is known only from a single specimen. A different assessment of their relationships is presented here. Colbert has already shown2,3 clearly and competently why the teeth and tooth cusps of Amphipithecus resemble those of catarrhines. I here outline some observations on how jaws function and why and how the jaw of Amphipithecus can be demonstrated to be similar to or different from those of other animals.
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References
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SIMONS, E. Relationships of Amphipithecus and Oligopithecus. Nature 232, 489–491 (1971). https://doi.org/10.1038/232489a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/232489a0
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