Pliopithecus

Pliopithecus (meaning "more ape") is a genus of extinct primates of the Miocene. It was discovered in 1837 by Édouard Lartet (1801–1871) in France, with fossils subsequently discovered in Switzerland, Slovakia and Spain.

Pliopithecus Temporal range: Miocene, PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N ↓
Mandible fragment of Pliopithecus antiquus from Sansan, France; cast from Museum national d'histoire naturelle, Paris
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Primates
Suborder:	Haplorhini
Infraorder:	Simiiformes
Family:	†Pliopithecidae
Subfamily:	†Pliopithecinae
Genus:	†Pliopithecus Gervais, 1849
Paleospecies
†Pliopithecus antiquus †Pliopithecus bii †Pliopithecus canmatensis †Pliopithecus piveteaui †Pliopithecus platyodon †Pliopithecus vindobonensis †Pliopithecus zhanxiangi

Pliopithecus antiquus jaw seen from above

Pliopithecus had a similar size and form to modern gibbons, to which it may be related, although it is probably not a direct ancestor. It had long limbs, hands, and feet, and may have been able to brachiate, swinging between trees using its arms. Unlike gibbons, it had a short tail, and only partial stereoscopic vision.^[1]

They appear to have originated in Asia and extended their range into Europe between 20 and 17 million years ago.^[2]

Begun and Harrison list the following species within the genus:^[2]

• Pliopithecus antiquus
• Pliopithecus bii
• Pliopithecus canmatensis
• Pliopithecus platyodon
• Pliopithecus vindobonensis
• Pliopithecus zhanxiangi

Pliopithecus antiquus has been referred to previously as P. piveteaui.^[3] P. vindobonensis is sometimes considered to be a separate genus, Epipliopithecus.^[4][2] Anapithecus is a close relative and was initially considered a subgenus of Pliopithecus.