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Dentition of Adapis parisiensis and the Evolution of Lemuriform Primates

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Lemur Biology

Abstract

The fossil record of Madagascar unfortunately sheds no light on the origin of its unique lemur fauna, nor does it assist in determining the relationships of the Malagasy lemurs to other primates. The known fossil forms are at most 3000–4000 years old (Tattersall, 1973a), which makes them virtual contemporaries rather than ancestors of the living species. The only adequately known fossil primates possibly related to the ancestry of the lemurs are found in sediments of Eocene age in North America, Europe, and Asia. The European genus Adapis includes species which deserve special attention in this regard.

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© 1975 Plenum Press, New York

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Gingerich, P.D. (1975). Dentition of Adapis parisiensis and the Evolution of Lemuriform Primates. In: Tattersall, I., Sussman, R.W. (eds) Lemur Biology. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4684-2121-7_5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4684-2121-7_5

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4684-2123-1

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4684-2121-7

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