Tarsiers are prosimian primates of the genus Tarsius, a monotypic genus in the family Tarsiidae, which is itself the lone extant family within the infraorder Tarsiiformes. The phylogenetic position of extant tarsiers within the order Primates has been debated for much of the past century, and tarsiers have alternately been classified with strepsirrhine primates in the suborder Prosimii, or as the sister group to the simians (=Anthropoidea) in the infraorder Haplorrhini. Analysis of SINE insertions, a type of macromutation to the DNA, is argued to offer very persuasive evidence for the monophyly of Haplorrhini, where other lines of evidence, such as DNA sequence data, had remained ambiguous. Thus, some systematists argue that the debate is conclusively settled in favor of a monophyletic Haplorrhini. The Ring-tailed Lemur (Lemur catta) is a prosimian of the family Lemuridae. ... Families 15, See classification A primate is any member of the biological order Primates, the group that contains all the species commonly related to the lemurs, monkeys, and apes, with the latter category including humans. ... Monotypic is an adjective, that refers to a taxonomic group with only one type: in botany it means that a taxon has only one species; Ginkgo is a monotypic genus, while Ginkgoaceae is a monotypic family. ... Families Cheirogaleidae Lemuridae Megaladapidae Indridae Daubentoniidae (Aye-aye) Loridae Galagonidae The Strepsirrhini clade is one of the two suborders of primates. ... Families Cebidae Aotidae Pitheciidae Atelidae Cercopithecidae Hylobatidae Hominidae The simians (infraorder Simiiformes) are the higher primates very common to most people: the monkeys and the apes, including humans. ... Families Tarsiidae Cebidae Aotidae Pitheciidae Atelidae Cercopithecidae Hylobatidae Hominidae The haplorrhines, the dry-nosed primates (the Greek name means simple-nosed), are members of the Haplorrhini clade: the prosimian tarsiers and all of the true simians (the monkeys and the apes, including humans). ...

Tarsiers have enormous eyes and long feet. Their feet have extremely elongated tarsus bones, which is how they got their name. They are primarily insectivorous, and catch insects by jumping at them. They are also known to prey on birds and snakes. As they jump from tree to tree, tarsiers can catch even birds in motion.^{[citation needed]} Gestation takes about six months, and tarsiers give birth to single offspring. FIG. 268– Bones of the right foot. ... Any organism with a diet that consists chiefly of insects and similar small creatures is an insectivore. ... Gestation is the carrying of an embryo or fetus inside a female viviparous animal. ...

All tarsier species are nocturnal in their habits, but like many nocturnal organisms some individuals may show more or less activity during the daytime. Unlike many nocturnal animals, however, tarsiers lack a light-reflecting area (tapetum lucidum) of the eye. They also have a fovea, atypical for nocturnal animals. The tarsier brain is different from other primates in terms of the arrangement of the connections between the two eyes and the lateral geniculate nucleus, which is the main region of the thalamus that receives visual information. The sequence of cellular layers receiving information from the ipsilateral (same side of the head) and contralateral (opposite side of the head) eyes in the lateral geniculate nucleus distinguishes tarsiers from lamurs, lorises and monkeys, which are all similar in this respect ^[1]. Some neuroscientists suggested that "this apparent difference distinguishes tarsiers from all other primates, reinforcing the view that they arose in an early, independent line of primate evolution" ^[2]. A bat illustrating nocturnal features. ... Tapetum lucidum in a calf eye, with the retina hanging down. ... The fovea, a part of the eye, is a spot located in the center of the macula. ... Grays FIG. 719– Hind- and mid-brains; postero-lateral view. ... The thalamus (from Greek θάλαμος = bedroom, chamber, IPA= /ˈθæləməs/) is a pair and symmetric part of the brain. ...

Fossils of tarsiers and tarsiiform primates are found in Asia, Europe, North America, and there are disputed fossils from Africa, but extant tarsiers are restricted to several Southeast Asian islands including the Philippines, Sulawesi, Borneo, and Sumatra. They also have the longest continuous fossil record of any primate genus, and the fossil record indicates that their dentition hasn't changed much, except in size, in the past 45 million years. Sulawesi (formerly more commonly known as Celebes, IPA: a Portuguese-originated form of the name) is one of the four larger Sunda Islands of Indonesia and is situated between Borneo and the Maluku Islands. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Kalimantan. ... Sumatra (also spelled Sumatera) is the sixth largest island in the world (approximately 470,000 km²) and is the largest island entirely in Indonesia (two larger islands, Borneo and New Guinea, are partially in Indonesia). ... Dentition is the development of teeth and their arrangement in the mouth. ...

Tarsiers have never formed successful breeding colonies in captivity, and when caged, tarsiers have been known to injure and even kill themselves because of the stress.^[3]

Classification

• Infraorder Tarsiiformes^[4]
  • Family Tarsiidae: tarsiers
    • Genus Tarsius
      • T. syrichta group
        • Philippine Tarsier, Tarsius syrichta
        • Western or Horsfield's Tarsier, Tarsius bancanus
      • T. tarsier group
        • Spectral Tarsier, Tarsius tarsier
        • Dian's Tarsier, Tarsius dentatus
        • Lariang Tarsier, Tarsius lariang
        • Peleng Tarsier, Tarsius pelengensis
        • Sangihe Tarsier, Tarsius sangirensis
        • Pygmy Tarsier, Tarsius pumilus

Binomial name (Linnaeus, 1758) Geographic distribution of Philippine Tarsier The Philippine Tarsier (Tarsius syrichta), known locally as the Mawmag in Cebuano/Visayan, is an endangered tarsier species endemic to the Philippines. ... Binomial name Tarsius bancanus Horsfield, 1821 Horsfields Tarsier (Tarsius bancanus), also known as Western Tarsiers, are a species of tarsier. ... Binomial name Tarsius tarsier (Erxleben, 1777) Synonyms Tarsius spectrum (Pallas, 1779) The Spectral Tarsier (Tarsius tarsier) is less adapted than the Philippine Tarsier or Horsfields Tarsier; for example, it lacks adhesive toes. ... [[{{{diversity_link}}}|Diversity]] {{{diversity}}} Binomial name Tarsius dentatus Niemitz, Nietsch, Warter & Rumpler, 1991 Trinomial name {{{trinomial}}} Type Species {{{type_species}}} {{{subdivision_ranks}}} [[Image:{{{range_map}}}|{{{range_map_width}}}|]] Synonyms {{{synonyms}}} Dians Tarsier (Tarsius dentatus), or the Diana Tarsier, is a nocturnal primate found on central Sulawesi, Indonesia. ... Binomial name Tarsius lariang Merker & Groves, 2006 The Lariang Tarsier (Tarsius lariang) is a recently described tarsier occurring in the western part of the central core of Sulawesi. ... Binomial name Tarsius pelengensis Sody, 1949 The Peleng Tarsier (Tarsius pelengensis), or the Peleng Island Tarsier, is a nocturnal primate found on Peleng Island, Indonesia. ... Binomial name Tarsius sangirensis Meyer, 1897 Sangihe Tarsier (Tarsius sangirensis), or the Sangihe Island Tarsier is a small primate found on Greater Sangihe Island which located about 200 kilometers north of the island of Sulawesi in Indonesia. ... Binomial name Tarsius pumilus Miller & Hollister, 1921 The Pygmy Tarsier (Tarsius pumilus), also known as the Mountain Tarsier or the Lesser Spectral Tarsier, is a nocturnal primate found on central Sulawesi, Indonesia, in an area with lower vegetative species diversity than the lowland tropical forests. ...

Conservation status

One tarsier species, Dian's Tarsier (Tarsius dentatus), is listed on the IUCN Red List as being "Lower Risk - Conservation Dependent". Two other species/sub-species, Horsfield's Tarsier (Tarsius bancanus), Tarsius bancanus bancanus, are listed as "Lower Risk - Least Concern". The Spectral Tarsier (Tarsius spectrum) is categorized as "Lower Risk, Not Threatened." All other tarsier species are listed as "Data Deficient". [[{{{diversity_link}}}|Diversity]] {{{diversity}}} Binomial name Tarsius dentatus Niemitz, Nietsch, Warter & Rumpler, 1991 Trinomial name {{{trinomial}}} Type Species {{{type_species}}} {{{subdivision_ranks}}} [[Image:{{{range_map}}}|{{{range_map_width}}}|]] Synonyms {{{synonyms}}} Dians Tarsier (Tarsius dentatus), or the Diana Tarsier, is a nocturnal primate found on central Sulawesi, Indonesia. ... The World Conservation Union or International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) is an international organization dedicated to natural resource conservation. ... Binomial name Tarsius bancanus Horsfield, 1821 Horsfields Tarsier (Tarsius bancanus), also known as Western Tarsiers, are a species of tarsier. ... Binomial name Tarsius tarsier (Erxleben, 1777) Synonyms Tarsius spectrum (Pallas, 1779) The Spectral Tarsier (Tarsius tarsier) is less adapted than the Philippine Tarsier or Horsfields Tarsier; for example, it lacks adhesive toes. ...

Gallery

		Tarsier in Bohol, Philippines. Photo of tarsier taken by User:Bwmodular File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Tarsier in Sarangani, Philippines Original copyright holder is LDC,Inc. ... Image File history File links Bohol_tarsier. ...	Spectral Tarsier Image File history File links Spectral_Tarsier. ...
Philippine Tarsier Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1704x2272, 1020 KB) A Philippine Tarsier (Tarsius syrichta) in the Philippine Tarsier Sanctuary at Corella, Bohol, Philippines Picture taken by Magalhães the 26th of March 2006 File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages...

Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (2592x1728, 2284 KB) Philippine Tarsier (Tarsius syrichta) Bohol, Phillipines Photographer: Plerzelwupp File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Tarsier List of Bohol flora and fauna User:Pinay06/Pictures... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1600x2400, 990 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Tarsier Bohol Philippine Tarsier User:Pinay06 ... Image File history File links Philippine Tarsier (Tarsius syrichta) Permission = Permission to publish this image was granted personally by Serafin Jun Ramos Jr. ...

External links

• Primate Info Net - Primate Factsheets & More: Tarsius sp.
• Video of a Tarsier
• A Synopsis of the Mammalian Fauna of the Philippine Islands
• Tarsier behaviour: index to species
• Descriptive Article of the Philippine Tarsier

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Tarsius

Wikispecies has information related to:

Tarsiiformes

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Tarsiidae

Wikispecies has information related to:

Tarsius

General references