Primates
Primates, which also include humans, have distinct differences among other mammals. Some of these differences include opposable thumbs and big toes for more movement, larger brain size, and the use of their enhanced sense of vision over their sense of smell. The study of primates is important to the understanding of humans, as they have many similar physical traits, but differing social traits. These differences are what anthropologists use to further understand human culture and how they interact with one another and the world around them. A hominin is any species that is related to humans and includes some species of primates. They all share the same common trait, bipedal locomotion, which means being able to stand and move on two feet. Which is another similarity between humans and primates.
 |
| The skeleton's of gorillas (left) and humans (right), comparing their skeletal structure that is designed for bipedal locomotion. Rice University, OpenStax, under CC BY 4.0 license |
There are many similarities among primates and humans, one of which being motherhood, and more specifically learning through observation. In the article "What Orangutans Taught Me About Motherhood" by Faye Harwell, the author goes on a trip and observes wild orangutans. She noticed one with a baby, where the mother was independently raising it. She made the connection to her own life as she was raised by a single mother. Orangutans and many other primate species follow the same rule of independent motherhood, with some occasional help from other primates in their groups. The author observed how the offspring kept in close watch of their mothers and would later to able to use those same skills to raise offspring of their own. Humans work much in the same way, as tasks such as motherhood come from observing their own mothers and learning from scientific research based off of other mothers. Observational learning is another major trait that connects primates to human species.
What Orangutans Taught Me About Motherhood by Faye Harwell
 |
| A mother orangutan carrying her baby. Sascha Wenninger/Flickr |
Primates and humans have many physical similarities. Some of these include a large brain size compared to body mass (with apes having the second highest intelligence after humans), a flat face and eyes on the same plane facing forward for a higher sense of vision over other senses, a longer gestational period of about 8 to 9 months, 5 digits on both the hands and feet and opposable thumbs, and bipedalism. Primates and more specifically apes are the closest relatives to humans biologically.
 |
| The comparison of other primate, chimpanzee, and humans skulls. |
One example of a zoo I can visit in person to observe primates is the Tampa Zoo. It is located in Tampa Florida. Hours are from 9:30 AM to 5:00 PM. There is a 51.95 admission charge. Some of their primate species include the Angolan Columbus monkey, Bornean orangutans, golden lion tamarins, Hamadryas baboons, and siamangs.
Comments
Post a Comment