Paracolobus

Paracolobus is an extinct genus of primate closely related to the living colobus monkeys. It lived in eastern Africa in the Pliocene and Early Pleistocene. Fossils have been found in Kenya and Ethiopia, in places such as the Omo valley.

Description

Species of Paracolobus were large monkeys; P. chemeroni is estimated to have weighed between, while P. mutiwa and the comparatively small P. enkorikae have been estimated at and, respectively. Compared to another giant monkey Cercopithecoides, Paracolobus had a longer face and deeper jaws. It had a longer cranium, broader muzzle, wider face and longer nasal bone than its closest relative, the extinct Rhinocolobus. Its dentition was similar to modern colobus monkeys, indicating a largely folivorous diet. Despite its large size, it was probably arboreal like its modern relatives.

Literature cited

McKenna, M.C. and Bell, S.K. 1997. Classification of Mammals: Above the species level. New York: Columbia University Press, 631 pp.