BCB705 Biodiversity: Chapter2 - Evolution of Biodiversity

Table of Contents

1. THE INFINITE VARIETY: THE BEGINNING OF LIFE
2. BUILDING BODIES: INVERTEBRATES OF THE OCEANS
3. THE FIRST FORESTS
4. THE SWARMING HORDES
5. THE CONQUEST OF THE WATER AND THE BIRTH OF THE VERTEBRATES
6. THE INVASION OF THE LAND
7. A WATER-TIGHT SKIN AND THE SHELLED EGG
8. LORDS OF THE AIR
9. EGGS, POUCHES AND PLACENTAS
10. THEME AND VARIATION
11. THE HUNTERS AND THE HUNTED
12. A LIFE IN THE TREES
    1. An ancestor to the primates
    2. The Ring-tailed lemur
    3. The male Ring-tailed lemur: The use of scent
    4. The Ring-tail: Time in trees
    5. Infant lemurs
    6. Sifakas
    7. The Indris
    8. The nocturnal lemurs
    9. The Aye-aye
    10. Competing with monkeys
    11. The Loris: Sign posting
    12. The Tarsier
    13. Monkeys: Sight is key
    14. Monkeys: The use of colourful displays and sound
    15. Monkeys: Anatomical features
    16. Scent in communication
    17. Marmosets
    18. Adapting to great weight
    19. Prehensile tails
    20. The adaptable Macaque monkey
    21. Macaques: Behavioural patterns
    22. Bi-pedalism
    23. The Orang Utan
    24. The Orang Utan: Supporting the great weight
    25. The Orang Utan: It's repertoire
    26. The Orang Utan: Solitude and size
    27. The Gibbons
    28. Gibbons: Family life
    29. Gorillas: The use of the arms
    30. Gorillas: Family groups
    31. Similarities between Gorillas and humans
    32. Gorillas: A placid existence
    33. Chimpanzees: Their diet
    34. Chimpanzees: Maternal support
    35. Chimpanzees: A friendly gesture
    36. Chimpanzees: The toolmakers
    37. New situations lead to greater change
    38. Test yourself
    39. Assignments
13. THE COMPULSIVE COMMUNICATORS

The adaptable Macaque monkey

The Macaque monkey (Macaca) is one of the most adaptable of primates capable of surviving in extreme conditions. There are about six different species and subspecies distributed from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific. One group (Macaca sylvana) lives on Gibraltar, the only non-human primate living naturally in Europe.

The Rhesus Macaque (Macaca mulatta) is one of the commonest monkeys in India, often living close to urban areas. In Indonesia the crab-eating Macaque (Macaca fascicularis) has become a competent swimmer and dives in the mangrove swamps for crabs and other crustaceans. In Malaysia, the pig-tailed macaque (Macaca nemestrina) has been trained to harvest coconuts. The Japanese Macaque (Macaca fuscata) is the most northerly living monkeys and has a shaggy coat to protect it from the cold winters.

Macaques spend most of their time on the ground. Their hands and eyes, inherited from an arboreal existence, together with adaptive learning abilities have permitted a successful transition to a terrestrial existence.

Crab-eating Macaque (Macaca fascicularis)