Xenotrichini
Xenotrichini (the Antilles monkeys) is a tribe of extinct primates, which lived on the Greater Antilles as recently as the 16th century.
| Xenotrichini | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Primates |
| Suborder: | Haplorhini |
| Infraorder: | Simiiformes |
| Family: | Pitheciidae |
| Subfamily: | Pitheciinae |
| Tribe: | †Xenotrichini MacPhee & Horovitz, 2004 |
| Genera | |
These Caribbean islands no longer contain endemic primates, although the most recently discovered species, the Hispaniola monkey, was reported to have lived on Hispaniola until the settlement by the Europeans. The relationship of these species is supported by details in the formation of the skull and the lower jaw, such as a reduction in the number of teeth.
Taxonomy
The exact timing and causes of extinction are not well-known and their relationship and placement in the parvorder of the New World monkeys is unsure. Originally they were thought to be closely related to the night monkeys, but more recent research as placed them in Callicebinae subfamily, containing the titi monkeys.[1]
A 2018 DNA study of the Jamaican monkey suggested that it diverged from its closest relative Cheracebus around 11 Ma, during the Late Miocene, which is younger than the 18 Ma Paralouatta from Cuba, meaning that the Jamaican monkey has a separate origin from the rest of the Antillean monkeys, making the group polyphyletic.[2] The Cuban monkeys (Paralouatta varonai and P. marianae) of Cuba were originally thought to be in the tribe, but more recent research shows a closer relationship with Alouatta, the howler monkeys.[3]
Species
So far, three species of Xenotrichini are known:
- The Jamaican monkey (Xenothrix mcgregori), from Jamaica.
- The Hispaniola monkey (Antillothrix bernensis), from Hispaniola.
- Insulacebus toussaintiana, also from Hispaniola.
References
- MacPhee, R. D. E.; Horovitz, I. (14 May 2004). "New craniodental remains of the quaternary Jamaican monkey Xenothrix mcgregori (Xenotrichini, Callicebinae, Pitheciidae), with a reconsideration of the Aotus hypothesis". American Museum Novitates (3434): 1–51. doi:10.1206/0003-0082(2004)434<0001:NCROTQ>2.0.CO;2. S2CID 86051925.
- Woods, Roseina; Turvey, Samuel T.; Brace, Selina; MacPhee, Ross D. E.; Barnes, Ian (2018-12-11). "Ancient DNA of the extinct Jamaican monkey Xenothrix reveals extreme insular change within a morphologically conservative radiation". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 115 (50): 12769–12774. Bibcode:2018PNAS..11512769W. doi:10.1073/pnas.1808603115. ISSN 0027-8424. PMC 6294883. PMID 30420497.
- Silvestro, Daniele; Marcelo F. Tejedor; Martha L. Serrano Serrano; Oriane Loiseau; Victor Rossier; Jonathan Rolland; Alexander Zizka; Alexandre Antonelli, and Nicolas Salamin. 2017. Evolutionary history of New World monkeys revealed by molecular and fossil data. BioRxiv _. 1–32. Accessed 2019-02-20.