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A molar microwear texture analysis of pitheciid primates
Anna J Ragni1,2, Mark F Teaford3, Peter S Ungar4
1Richard Gilder Graduate School, American Museum of Natural History, New York, New York.
American Journal of Primatology
|September 20, 2017
Summary
Dental microwear textures reveal dietary differences in pitheciid primates. While seed consumption varies, microwear complexity and dispersion patterns offer insights into primate diets and feeding behaviors.
Area of Science:
- Primate Paleontology
- Paleoecology
- Dental Microwear Analysis
Background:
- Dental microwear textures are used to reconstruct fossil primate diets.
- Pitheciid primates (e.g., Chiropotes, Pithecia, Callicebus) consume varying amounts of hard seeds.
- No dental microwear data existed for pitheciid molars prior to this study.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if molar microwear texture complexity differentiates pitheciid taxa based on seed consumption.
- To determine if dietary variability, particularly in Callicebus, is reflected in microwear texture dispersion.
- To analyze dental microwear textures on M² facets of Chiropotes satanas, Pithecia irrorata, and Callicebus moloch.
Main Methods:
- Examined dental microwear textures on M²
- Phase II
- facets of three pitheciid species using a scanning confocal profiler.
Main Results:
- Significant differences were found in central tendencies for mean dale area (Sda), anisotropy (Str), and heterogeneity (HAsfc9).
- Ten microwear measures showed significant differences in dispersion.
- Callicebus exhibited significantly greater variability in eight out of ten dispersion measures compared to other taxa.
Conclusions:
- Pitheciid primates with distinct diets and seed reliance show differences in dental microwear textures.
- Microwear texture dispersion, especially, shows promise for identifying dietary variability within primate species.
- Findings contribute to understanding primate feeding ecology and dietary reconstruction methods.
