Astounding Facts About Primates that Never Cease to Amaze
20. There are “New World Monkeys” and “Old World Monkeys.”
New World monkeys are found from southern Mexico to Central and South America. In other words, the “New World” that Europeans “discovered” in the 1400s and 1500s — and confusingly are considered more primitive than Old World monkeys. Their brains are considered less complex, and if they have thumbs, they are not opposable than the Old World monkeys. Most of them have 36 teeth, and their nostrils point outward. Their bodies are slender and have long, narrow hands. They usually have a prehensile or at least a partially prehensile tail. This classification includes marmosets, tamarins, titis, capuchins, spider monkeys, woolly monkeys, howler monkeys, squirrel monkeys, owl monkeys, the sakis, and the uakaris.
Old World monkeys are in southern Asia and all of Africa. Most, but not all, have opposable thumbs and their tails are never prehensile. They only have 32 teeth, and their nostrils are close together; their noses resemble a cat. Like baboons, many Old World monkey species have cheek pouches to hold food and thick pads on their buttocks. This group of monkeys is more closely related to apes and, therefore, more closely related to humans. This could also be relevant to why their brains are more complex. Old World monkeys include macaques, baboons, mandrills, mangabeys, colobus, langurs, vervets, lemurs, galagos, pottos, tarsiers, lorises, patas, proboscis, guenons, and snub-nosed monkeys.
New World monkeys are found from southern Mexico to Central and South America. In other words, the “New World” that Europeans “discovered” in the 1400s and 1500s — and confusingly are considered more primitive than Old World monkeys. Their brains are considered less complex, and if they have thumbs, they are not opposable than the Old World monkeys. Most of them have 36 teeth, and their nostrils point outward. Their bodies are slender and have long, narrow hands. They usually have a prehensile or at least a partially prehensile tail. This classification includes marmosets, tamarins, titis, capuchins, spider monkeys, woolly monkeys, howler monkeys, squirrel monkeys, owl monkeys, the sakis, and the uakaris.
Old World monkeys are in southern Asia and all of Africa. Most, but not all, have opposable thumbs and their tails are never prehensile. They only have 32 teeth, and their nostrils are close together; their noses resemble a cat. Like baboons, many Old World monkey species have cheek pouches to hold food and thick pads on their buttocks. This group of monkeys is more closely related to apes and, therefore, more closely related to humans. This could also be relevant to why their brains are more complex. Old World monkeys include macaques, baboons, mandrills, mangabeys, colobus, langurs, vervets, lemurs, galagos, pottos, tarsiers, lorises, patas, proboscis, guenons, and snub-nosed monkeys.
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13 September 2022
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