Page 198 - The Dinosaur Book and Other Wonders of the Prehistoric World (DK-Smithsonian)

Primates

The long snout of Plesiadapis No bigger than your hand,
was equipped with squirrel-like the tiny primate lived about
front teeth and grinding cheek 40 million years ago in the
teeth suitable for eating plants.
The rise of mammals Plesiadapis Eosimias
forests of China.

The
47-million-
year-old fossil of
Darwinius still had
its last meal
in its stomach.
Eosimias used its
grasping hands to climb
trees in search of insects,
fruit, and flower nectar.

The curved claws
had sharp tips for
climbing trees. Dryopithecus

Darwinius

The hands had
opposable thumbs—
they could pinch
against the fingers to This early ape was
give a secure grip on well adapted for life in
branches and food. the trees, with long
arms for reaching
between branches.

The first primates, such as Plesiadapis, were mostly tree-dwelling animals such as
appeared about 56 million years ago. Dryopithecus, which would have walked on
They soon split into lemur-type primates, all fours when on the ground. However, some
like Darwinius, and early monkeys like later apes adapted to life on the ground by
Eosimias. The oldest-known apes were alive walking upright on their hind legs. They
196 about 25 million years ago. Their descendants included our own ancestors.

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