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Pliopithecoid
Pliopithecoidea is an extinct superfamily of catarrhine primates that inhabited Asia and Europe during the Miocene. Although they were once a widespread and diverse group of primates, the pliopithecoids have no living descendants. History of discovery The first fossil specimens attributed to Pliopithecoidea were discovered by Édouard Lartet in Sansan, France in 1837. These fossils were later referenced by Henri Marie Ducrotay de Blainville in 1839, who named the type species '' Pliopithecus antiquus''. A second species, ''Pliopithecus platyodon'', was discovered in Switzerland by Biedermann in 1863. Following this, a small number of other pliopithecoid species were described from fossil collections found in France, Germany, and Poland. In the mid-twentieth century, paleontologists Johannes Hürzeler and Helmuth Zapfe reinvigorated interest in the pliopithecoids with a series of publications in which they named a number of new species, including ''Pliopithecus vindobonensis'', ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Epipliopithecus
''Epipliopithecus vindobonensis'' is an extinct species of pliopithecoid primate recovered from the Middle Miocene deposits of Devínska Nová Ves fissure in western Slovakia. ''Epipliopithecus'' is one of the few pliopithecoids for which both cranial and post-cranial fossil material has been recovered. Most pliopithecoids are known only from fossilized teeth, whereas ''Epipliopithecus'' is known from three nearly complete skeletons. As such, ''Epipliopithecus'' has greatly informed the modern understanding of pliopithecoid anatomy, locomotion, and phylogeny. History of discovery ''Epipliopithecus'' was discovered and described by Helmuth Zapfe and Johannes Hürzeler. The fossil material was found in a fissure deposit near Devínska Nová Ves (Slovakia) in the southern part of the Carpathian Mountains. The rock surrounding the fissure is limestone and dolomite of Jurassic age. The fissure deposit itself is clearly much younger, as has been demonstrated to date to the lower mid ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |