ANT333Y1 Chapter Notes - Chapter 4: Quadrupedalism, Folivore, Gastrointestinal Tract
Document Summary
Strepsirhines on average are smaller than haplorhines. Nocturnal species are usually smaller than diurnal. Body plan reflects an inherent arboreal adaptation. Common traits: pentadactyly, opposable big toe/thumb, high wrist mobility, low ankle mobility, nails instead of claws, body covered in hair. Infants are usually differently coloured from parent which elicits protective behavior from adult. Plesiomorphic trait an ancestral trait with a long evolutionary history. Amorphic trait a derived, more recently evolved trait. Allometry the relationship between size and shape and how this relates to physiological and morphological aspects of the body. If linear dimension of an animal we to double, surface area would increase by a multiple of four, and volume by eight. Larger animals have less s. a. = less heat loss. Smaller animals have to produce more heat, therefore, must eat more. Jarman-bell principle: large animals require more total food intake per day and because of this, they cannot afford to seek out widely distributed high energy resources.
