Using fossil evidence and statistical modelling, scientists reconstructed the ancient habitats of the earliest primates. Their findings, published in PNAS, point to cold northern climates - likely in North America - as the birthplace of the primate lineage, with environments marked by hot summers and freezing winters.
"For decades, the idea that primates evolved in warm, tropical forests has gone unquestioned," said Jorge Avaria-Llautureo, lead author at the University of Reading. "Our findings flip that narrative entirely. It turns out primates didn't emerge from lush jungles - they came from cold, seasonal environments in the northern hemisphere."
The study suggests that the ability to adapt and migrate played a critical role in primate survival and diversification. Primates that moved further distances when local climates became unstable - averaging 561 kilometers compared to 137 kilometers for those in similarly unstable zones - were more likely to survive and give rise to new species.
Researchers propose that early primates may have coped with harsh winters by hibernating, a strategy still used by modern dwarf lemurs in Madagascar, which burrow and sleep underground during colder months.
The team found that primates colonized tropical rainforests only much later in their evolutionary journey. Their migration followed a trajectory from cold zones to temperate climates, then arid regions, and finally to today's hot and humid jungles. This environmental movement and the accompanying need to adapt helped drive primate evolution and speciation.
Research Report:The radiation and geographic expansion of primates through diverse climates
Related Links
University of Reading
All About Human Beings and How We Got To Be Here
| Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters |
| Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters |
