Historia evolutiva de los catarrinos que llegaron a Suramérica

DAMIÁN RUIZ RAMONI

La Primatología en Venezuela

Equinoccio

Año: 2022; p. 375 - 395

Platyrrhines have been considered the only South American primates;however, humans (Homo sapiens) that are catarrhines, are also widely dis-tributed in this continent. It was not always thought that this species hadan allochthonous origin; in the 18th century, Florentino Ameghino had theidea that humans had emerged from Argentina, and then they distributedto the ranges that they now occupy. Today it is known that the lineagefrom where H. sapiens developed has its origins in Africa, and that fossilevidence shows predecessor species even before the genus Homo. Thesespecies have played a key role in the development of the adaptations thatdefined humans. Although several authors have tried to define this primate,this chapter considers five major adaptations that defined its evolutionaryhistory: 1) large brain capacity, 2) able hand, 3) bipedalism, 4) reduction ofthe canines, and 5) reduction of body hair. Even though these adaptationslikely arose in an African environment they have been so efficient that haveenabled the success of humans in South America.