Maxillae and associated gnathodental specimens of Nacholapithecus kerioi, a large-bodied hominoid from Nachola, northern Kenya.
The middle Miocene large-bodied hominoid from Nachola, initially attributed to Kenyapithecus, was recently transferred to a new genus and species Nacholapithecus kerioi. The hypodigm of N. kerioi consists of numerous maxillae, mandibles, and isolated teeth, as well as a number of postcranial bones. A detailed description of the previously discovered postcranial material has already been presented. This article aims to give a detailed description of maxillary specimens (including some mandibular fragments associated with them) of N. kerioi collected by the Japan-Kenya Joint Project team during the field seasons of 1982, 1984, and 1986. The maxillary specimens of N. kerioi retain a set of primitive catarrhine features, such as a relatively shallow palate, low position of the anterior zygomatic root, and the lack of enlarged premolars. Yet, compared to the Early Miocene Proconsul, N. kerioi is derived in having a moderately elongated subnasal clivus that appears to have overlapped the hard palate.
Kunimatsu
Yutaka
Y
Primate Research Institute, Kyôto University, Kanrin, Inuyama, Aichi, 484-8506, Japan. kunimats@pri.kyoto-u.ac.jp
Ishida
Hidemi
H
Nakatsukasa
Masato
M
Nakano
Yoshihiko
Y
Sawada
Yoshihiro
Y
Nakayama
Katsuhiro
K
D000818:Animals; D002965:Classification; D005580:Fossils; D015186:Hominidae / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D006801:Humans; D007630:Kenya; D008437:Maxilla / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D014070:Tooth / Q000033:anatomy & histology