A proximal radius of Barberapithecus huerzeleri from Castell de Barberà: Implications for locomotor diversity among pliopithecoids

The Miocene primate Pliobates is a pliopithecoid

“…Part of the problem when it comes to include postcranial characters in phylogenetic analyses of pliopithecoids is undoubtedly attributable to the large amount of missing data for most species. Besides Pliobates , which is now the most complete crouzeliid individual known, it is only well known in the pliopithecid Epipliopithecus 23 , 30 , 31 , generally interpreted as a generalized quadruped with limited climbing and suspensory abilities 32 – 34 . However, the meager available record suggests that the group as a whole displayed much more diverse postcranial adaptations 34 – 36 .…”

“…Besides Pliobates , which is now the most complete crouzeliid individual known, it is only well known in the pliopithecid Epipliopithecus 23 , 30 , 31 , generally interpreted as a generalized quadruped with limited climbing and suspensory abilities 32 – 34 . However, the meager available record suggests that the group as a whole displayed much more diverse postcranial adaptations 34 – 36 . This is most clearly evidenced by the postcranium of Pliobates , which reveals a mosaic of stem catarrhine-like features combined with crown catarrhine and even crown hominoid synapomorphies absent in Epipliopithecus 1 (see Fig.…”

“…6 and Supplementary Table 4 ), such as modern hominoid-like humeroradial and diarthrodial distal radioulnar joints 1 . Previous inferences about the positional behavior of crouzeliid pliopithecoids were very restricted, based on a few isolated specimens available for each genus, suggesting (semi)arboreal quadrupedalism with strong climbing abilities and a varying degree of suspensory behaviors 18 , 34 , 35 . Based on the phalanges and femora of Anapithecus 18 , 37 and especially a phalanx of Laccopithecus 38 , anapithecines may be inferred as more suspensory than Epipliopithecus .…”

“…Based on the phalanges and femora of Anapithecus 18 , 37 and especially a phalanx of Laccopithecus 38 , anapithecines may be inferred as more suspensory than Epipliopithecus . In turn, a talus and a calcaneus of Crouzelia indicate a strong quadrupedal component 35 , whereas a proximal radius of the stem crouzeliine Barberapithecus indicates enhanced mobility at the elbow joint compared with Epipliopithecus but evinces no clear climbing or suspensory adaptations 34 . In contrast, the hominoid-like humeroradial articulation of Pliobates , characterized among others by a moderately globular capitulum, a well-developed zona conoidea, and an almost circular radial head with a reduced lateral lip, is clearly adapted for climbing, while its reduced ulnocarpal articulation (more derived than in Ekembo ) indicates a decreased emphasis on quadrupedalism 1 .…”

“… 1 (Supplementary Data 4 and 5 ); furthermore, due to the addition of new taxa, we modified the definition and/or recoded the taxa for the following characters: #18, #24, #35, #38, #41, #43, #45, #47, #53–56, #58–59, #64–69, and #88 (Supplementary Data 4 and 5 ). We further updated the cranial and postcranial features based on recently published papers dealing with Pliobates and/or other pliopithecoids 9 , 10 , 34 , 46 (Supplementary Data 4 and 5 ): in the case of the cranium, we updated the characters related to the carotid canal based on ref. 9 (i.e., discarding characters #106 and #107 of ref.…”