Researchers have uncovered exciting new information about the extinct Caribbean monkey, Antilothrix vernensis, thanks to the discovery of a rare and well-preserved fossil in the Dominican Republic.
The fossils were analyzed by a team of experts from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.
This study provides a deeper understanding of the anatomy and ecological history of these long-extinct primates.
This surprising discovery at the Cueva Macho fossil site makes it the most important source of primate fossils on the Caribbean island of Hispaniola, shared by Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
Dr. Siobhan Cook is an associate professor of functional anatomy and evolution at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.
“These fossils will help us better understand the anatomy of Antilothrix. It will help us identify the ecological factors that may have contributed to the extinction of Antilothrix It helps,” Dr. Cook said.
“These data can ultimately guide policies to conserve the remaining mammal diversity on Caribbean islands and other regions.”
Examining the past of Caribbean monkeys
The study, published in the Journal of Human Evolution, suggests that Antillothrix bernensis likely became extinct within the past 10,000 years.
Dr. Cook and her team first discovered the fossil in 2009, and additional discoveries were made in collaboration with the Dominican Republic Speleological Society.
By 2018, the latest fossil finds had been excavated, providing a unique opportunity to study a large collection of primates from South America and the Caribbean. These fossils are currently housed at the National Museum of Natural History in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
“The number and quality of Antilothrix skulls outlined in this paper allows us to fully describe the skulls and understand the differences between individuals. This allows us to learn about the diet and social systems of these animals. “We can do that,” Dr. Cook said.
Additionally, she points out that large collections of monkey fossils from South America and the Caribbean are rarely available. The only other individual recorded in a relatively large sample is the extinct South American monkey Homunculus patagonicus (an animal that lived in Patagonia).
Lifestyle of extinct monkeys
Using a virtual three-dimensional model, experts were able to thoroughly study the fossil. Antillothrix bernensis was monomorphic, with males and females about the same size and weighing up to 5 pounds.
“This suggests there was little competition for mates between the males. They may have lived in small family groups consisting of females, males and dependents,” Cook said. did.
Research suggests that their diet consisted primarily of fruit, based on their rounded teeth and relatively small canine teeth.
Interestingly, Antilothrix may have a contemporary relative, the South American titid monkey. With short canine teeth and weighing just over 2 pounds, this monkey offers the closest glimpse of the extinct Hispani orchid monkey in the wild.
How did the monkeys get to the cave?
A mystery remains as to how several species of these tree-dwelling primates ended up at the bottom of a cave about 10,000 years ago.
Dr. Cook offers a potential explanation: predation by the now extinct owl. Visible damage to the monkey’s jaw fossil suggests an owl attack.
The fossil, which is missing part of its jaw, is consistent with the owl’s preference for eating the masseter muscle, the main muscle attached to the jaw, leading to the theory that the owl brought the monkey back to the cave.
“These lesions are consistent with the fact that owls sometimes preferentially consume the masseter muscle, the main muscle attached to their jaws, when feeding,” Dr. Cook explained.
“Rather than the monkeys falling randomly, it is possible that an extinct owl (which would have been quite large) caught these monkeys and brought them into the cave where they lived.”
A unique window into the past
Ultimately, this research opens a unique window into the past and provides valuable information about extinct species that once called the Dominican Republic and Haiti home.
“Combining these new specimens with previously described specimens allows detailed studies of population- and species-level variation, an extremely rare opportunity for fossil primates,” the study said. said the people.
The study will be published in the Journal of Human Evolution.
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