Fossil primates and living insects

["Williams, Tim" <TiJaWi@agron.iastate.edu>]

Not about dinosaurs, but perhaps obliquely relevant ...

Tavare, S. et al. (2002).  Using the fossil record to estimate the age of
the last common ancestor of extant primates.  Nature 416: 726-729

>From the abstract: "Here we present a new statistical method, based on an
estimate of species preservation derived from a model of the diversification
pattern, that suggests a Cretaceous last common ancestor of primates,
approximately 81.5 Myr ago, close to the initial divergence time inferred
from molecular data.  It also suggests that no more than 7% of all primate
species that have ever existed are known from fossils."

The latest Nature also mentions (from an article published online in
Science) the discovery of a new order of *living* insects - the
Mantophasmatodea - found lurking on the mountains of Namibia, southern
Africa.  The last extant insect order to be discovered was the
Grylloblattodea, 87 years ago.  There's a nice story and picture at Nat Geo
News:

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2002/03/0328_0328_TVstickinsect.html



Tim



------------------------------------------------------------ 

Timothy J. Williams 

USDA-ARS Researcher 
Agronomy Hall 
Iowa State University 
Ames IA 50014 

Phone: 515 294 9233 
Fax:   515 294 3163