Monday, April 25, 2016

New Evidence of Monkey Migration

Tech Times is reporting research that indicates that monkeys made the journey from South America to Central America much earlier than thought.  Ted Ranosa writes:
In a study featured in the journal Nature, researchers from the Florida Museum of Natural History (FLMNH) have identified the remains of an ancient species of monkey known as Panamacebus transitus, which was recovered during excavations for the Panama Canal.

Jonathan Bloch, a paleontologist from the FLMNH, explained that the
Panamacebus transitus was a close relative of modern-day capuchin monkeys, or "organ-grinder" monkeys, and squirrel monkeys that are typically found in Central and South America.

An analysis of the prehistoric monkey's teeth revealed that they were encased in rocks that dated back to 21 million years ago. This suggests that the animal was somehow able to reach Panama from South America even before the two continents were connected with the formation of the Isthmus of Panama.
Monkeys are extremely resourceful and a rafting hypothesis has been floating around for quite some time, with little evidence to support it. Now we have some.

WARNING: I almost gave this story a miss because the ads on the Tech Times site are intrusive and omnipresent.  Several videos launched that I was not able to stop.  I get that there is a need to advertise, but this kind of thing is ruining the internet.  

1 comment:

  1. Hi Jim, The UPI story provides the same info as the Tech Times site, but with no obtrusive videos.

    http://www.upi.com/Science_News/2016/04/20/First-North-American-monkey-fossils-recovered-from-Panama-Canal-excavation/8701461183393/

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