Interspecific Allometry Research Articles

Adaptation and body size in primates

The present paper is concerned with the phenomenon of interspecific allo metry in primates and its relationship to the concept of adaptation. A metrical study of the primate skull was performed to investigate the extent to which particular dimensions of the primate skull (e. g. foramen magnum area, second lower molar length) can be used as indicators of body size and to analyse the allometric relationships involved in the evolution of specific features (e. g. cranial capacity, foramen magnum size, tooth dimensions). Fourteen standard dimensions were taken from the skulls of 48 nonhuman primate species. The logarithmic relationship between these dimensions and body weight was analysed. Most consistent indicators of body size in living primates are skull length, zygomatic width, condylar area, and foramen magnum area. Brain size and foramen magnum area have both increased by adaptive shifts in primate evolution.