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Thursday, July 20, 2006
Money see, monkey avoid
Seeing the serpent
The ability to spot venomous snakes may have played a major role in the evolution of monkeys, apes and humans, according to a new hypothesis by Lynne Isbell, professor of anthropology at UC Davis. The work is published in the July issue of the Journal of Human Evolution.
Primates have good vision, enlarged brains, and grasping hands and feet, and use their vision to guide reaching and grasping. Scientists have thought that these characteristics evolved together as early primates used their hands and eyes to grab insects and other small prey, or to handle and examine fruit and other foods.
Isbell suggests instead that primates developed good close-up eyesight to avoid a dangerous predator -- the snake.
Read the entire press release from EurekAlert.
Posted by Will at July 20, 2006 10:16 AM in Anthropology