Primates are mammals that belong to the order Primates, including humans, apes, monkeys, and prosimians. This biological order includes and array of anatomically and intellectuarlly diverse species. Although there are exceptions, in general primates are distinct from other mammals in the following characteristics.
Primate Characteristics
Limbs
Primates have two hands and two feet, rather than four feet or paws. Likewise, they have two arms and two legs, rather than four legs.
Digits
Primates have padded fingers and toes with finger and toe nails instead of claws. Marmosets and tamarins are the exception. These small, squirrel-like monkeys still have claws, which are necessary for climbing and extracting exudates from trees. Most primates also have opposable thumbs that provide the ability to grasp. There are a few exceptions to this also, such as colobus which have only a small bump (or vestigial thumb).
Brains
Primate brains are large relative to body size, which translates to high intelligence.
Eyes
A primate’s eyes are protected by a round, bony skull. They face forward for bionocular vision. Primates have a higher dependence on vision than sense of smell. All diurnal (day-active) primates have color vision.
Teeth
Primates have four types of teeth: incisors, canines, premolars, and molars.
Body
Primates have collar bones for a wide range of motion.
Social systems
Most primate social systems are quite complex. Examples include solitary animals, monogomous pairs, single-male/ multi-female groups, and multi-male/ multi-female groups. The most complex include fission-fusion societies with fluctuating small subgroup compositions within larger communities.
Nonhuman primates are our closest living relatives. Human DNA is 98.4% identical to that of chimpanzees and bonobos. More then 600 different taxa of primates are distributed throughout Africa, Madagascar, South and Central America, and Asia. The largest living primate is the gorilla, with adult males weighing up to about 227 kilograms (500 lbs.). The smallest living primate is the mouse lemur, with an average weight of about 30 grams (1 oz.). New species of primates are being discovered still. Since 2000, more than 50 previously unknown primate species have been described.