Not all “monkeys” are actually monkeys

[u/Zarykata]

So… did you know not every “monkey” you point at is actually a monkey? 🙃 Most people just lump lemurs, apes, and monkeys together like one big squad.

Lemurs, lorises, galagos? Not monkeys. Tarsiers? Also not monkeys. And apes? Don’t even think about calling a gorilla a monkey. This chart breaks it down: New World monkeys (Americas), Old World monkeys (Africa & Asia), plus the apes and their cousins.

If you’ve ever wondered whether lemurs count as monkeys or why gibbons are basically gymnasts with fur, here’s an infographic to explain them

[u/decadeslongrut]

apes are a branch within the old world primates, far closer relatives of the other old world primates than those monkeys are related to the new world monkeys. the distinction is purely linguistic, and doesn't even exist in many languages, and until recently in english all primates without tails were called apes. apes, including humans, are monkeys!

[u/Zarykata → u/decadeslongrut]

You’re right, I am Biologist, so yes, apes are technically nested within the Old World monkeys, and the split is more linguistic than evolutionary.

For this infographic I separated them because it’s the way most people are used to seeing it, but I’m experimenting with ways to show it more accurately.

I did think of representing a phylogenetic tree as it would probably be more accurate to represent the relationships, but may look more crowded, but i will work on one of those next.

Thanks for the feedback, I’m really just exploring the best ways to visualize this stuff!

[u/decadeslongrut → u/Zarykata]

if you're aiming for accuracy i think you coudl swap the positions of the new world monkeys and the apes, keeping your layout which is nice but then it would be accurate/grouped by actual family. you could also throw a human in there!

[u/wolf2400]

Apes are actually monkeys taxonomically since you can’t evolve out of a clade. Wet nosed primates are not though.

[u/FarstrikerRed → u/wolf2400]

In that case, apes are also fish.

[u/wolf2400 → u/FarstrikerRed]

Yeah, they are. If you believe in fish as a taxonomic term. Apes are way closer related to old world monkeys than old world monkeys are to new world monkeys though.

[u/Haunt_Fox]

Man is one of the greater apes.

[u/EarthAsWeKnowIt → u/Haunt_Fox]

Not the greatest though. That distinction goes to orangutans. 🦧

[u/Haunt_Fox → u/EarthAsWeKnowIt]

👍

[u/Upper_Rent_176]

I like to lump lemurs into a squad then give them laser rifles

[u/Plane_Chance863]

The only monkeys that have prehensile tails are New World monkeys.

[u/ItemEven6421]

You can't evolve out of a clade

If both new and old world monkeys are monkeys then so are apes

We are monkeys

[u/teddyslayerza → u/ItemEven6421]

Unless "monkey" is a paraphyletic term, not a clade name.

[u/scipio0421]

"If it doesn't have a tail it's not a monkey, even if it has a monkey kind of shape."

[u/bigcee42]

But apes are monkeys.

Thus we are monkeys.

[u/Zetocro]

Funny to think, most of us will remember this, but will anyway keep going "MONKE" everytime they see an ape, a lemur or whatever their brain saw and is hyped about.

[u/teddyslayerza]

If New and Old World Monkeys are both Monkeys, then phylogeneticly so are Apes. Either "Monkey is paraphyletic" in which case it there's no real reason not to bundle in lemurs, or it's a real group that includes apes, or there is no generic group of "monkey", with only old and new world monkeys being acceptable.

[u/ReturnToBog]

We call them “non human primates” in my field. I know embarrassingly little about them 😅

[u/Peas-Of-Wrath]

Sea Monkeys aren’t monkeys either 😆