[Evolution and functional morphology of primate facial skulls].

Abstract

Both ontogenetically and phylogenetically the facial skull of primates consists of two components: the endocranial nasal capsule, and the exocranial membrane bones. The cartilaginous nasal capsule of the fetal period constitutes the framework for the nasal cavity, and it also functions as an expansive basis for the developing facial skull. In adult animals, its ossified parts form the fragile ethmoid bone. The structure of the nasal capsule is determined on the one hand by the spatial requirements of the orbits and of the nasal cavity (with respiratory and olfactory components), and on the other hand by the biomechanical properties of the chewing apparatus. The interaction of these heterogeneous factors results in complex, species-specific compromises. Primates are characterized by a gradual reduction of their olfactory system throughout evolution and by binocular vision. Their chewing apparatus shows constructional adaptations to a varying herbivorous diet. Viewed within a phylogenetic-systematic framework, primate evolution may be taken as a natural experiment that demonstrates the influence of various factors on a complex structural system such as the nasal and facial skeleton.