Reconstructions of Theropithecus oswaldi by Mauricio Anton. From Koobi Fora Vol. 6 Fossil Monkeys.
The Old World monkeys (Superfamily Cercopithecoidea) comprise one of the most geographically widespread and diverse lineages of primates that has ever existed. Although their evolutionary history dates back to the early Miocene, evidence of Old World monkeys becomes common in the fossil record only in the latest Miocene and Pliocene. The fossil record of the group in Africa is particularly rich and well-dated. My research has concentrated on illumination of the evolutionary history of the Theropithecus lineage. My research on the evolution of the snub-nosed monkeys of East Asia has led me to have a strong interest in the evolution of the colobine monkeys, especially in the significance of ruminant digestion in that group.
The evolution of habitual bipedal posture and locomotion is considered the key innovation which distinguishes the human lineage. Despite its importance, our knowledge of the processes leading to the emergence of habitual bipedalism remains unclear, largely because the behaviors that provided the impetus for this momentous change were not preserved in the fossil record. My research on the evolution of human bipedalism and its ramifications has been done mostly in collaboration with George Chaplin. The premise of our research has been that the behaviors leading to the regular adoption of bipedal postures in hominins must have conferred considerable reproductive success to individuals engaging in those behaviors. Behaviors that were common (e.g., feeding, resting, sleeping) are not necessarily important in terms of their impact on reproductive success. For this reason, our research has emphasized the importance of bipedal displays and appeasement postures in the evolution of habitual bipedalism in human ancestors. These behaviors are important, especially in our closest African ape relatives, in determining the outcomes of agonistic encounters and of disputes over mating access in females.
Selected publications:
Su, D. F., Kelley, J., Flynn, L. J., Ji, X. P., Deng, C. L., Deng, T., . . . Jablonski, N. G. (2024). Paleoecology and paleobiogeography of the latest Miocene site of Shuitangba, Zhaotong, China. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 641, 112112. doi:10.1016/j.palaeo.2024.112112
Jablonski, N. G. (2021). Social and affective touch in primates and its role in the evolution of social cohesion. Neuroscience, 464, 117-125. doi:10.1016/j.neuroscience.2020.11.024
Jablonski, N. G., Ji, X., Kelley, J., Flynn, L. J., Deng, C., & Su, D. F. (2020). Mesopithecus pentelicus from Zhaotong, China, the easternmost representative of a widespread Miocene cercopithecoid species. Journal of Human Evolution, 146, 102851. doi:10.1016/j.jhevol.2020.102818
Khan, M. A., Kelley, J., Flynn, L. J., Babar, M. A., & Jablonski, N. G. (2020). New fossils of Mesopithecus from Hasnot, Pakistan. Journal of Human Evolution, 145, 102818. doi:10.1016/j.jhevol.2020.102818
Chaplin, G., Jablonski, N. G., Sussman, R. W., and Kelley, E. A. (2014). The role of piloerection in primate thermoregulation. Folia Primatologica, 85(1), 1-17. doi:10.1159/000355007
Cerling, T. E., Chritz, K. L., Jablonski, N. G., Leakey, M. G., and Manthi, F. K. (2013). Diet of Theropithecus from 4 to 1 Ma in Kenya. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 110(26), 10507-10512. doi:10.1073/pnas.1222571110
Ji, X., Jablonski, N. G., et al. (2013). Juvenile hominoid cranium from the terminal Miocene of Yunnan, China. Chinese Science Bulletin, 58(31), 3771-3779. doi:10.1007/s11434-013-6021-x
Liedigk, R., Yang, M., Jablonski, N. G., et.al. (2012). Evolutionary history of the odd-nosed monkeys and the phylogenetic position of the newly described Myanmar snub-nosed monkey Rhinopithecus strykeri. PloS one, 7(5), e37418. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0037418
Jablonski, N. G., & Frost, S. (2010). Cercopithecoidea. In L. Werdelin & W. J. Sanders (Eds.), Cenozoic Mammals of Africa (pp. 393-428). Berkeley, CA: University of California.
Jablonski, N. G., & Chaplin, G. (2009). The fossil record of gibbons. In S. Lappan & D. J. Whittaker (Eds.), The Gibbons: New Perspectives on Small Ape Socioecology and Population Biology (pp. 111-130). New York: Springer.
McBrearty, S., & Jablonski, N. G. (2005). First fossil chimpanzee. Nature, 437(7055),105-108. doi:10.1038/nature04008
Jablonski, N. G., & Chaplin, G. (2004). Becoming bipedal: How do theories of bipedalization stand up to anatomical scrutiny? In F. C. Anapol, R. Z. German & N. G. Jablonski (Eds.), Shaping Primate Evolution: Form, Function and Behavior (pp. 281-296). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
Jablonski, N. G. (2003). The evolution of the tarsiid niche. In P. C. Wright, E. L. Simons & S. Gursky (Eds.), Tarsiers: Past, Present, and Future (pp. 35-49). New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press.
Jablonski, N. G., Leakey, M. G., Kiarie, C., & Anton, M. (2002). A new skeleton of Theropithecus brumpti (Primates: Cercopithecidae) from Lomekwi, West Turkana, Kenya. Journal of Human Evolution, 43(6), 887-923. doi:10.1006/jhev.2002.0607
Jablonski, N. G. (2002). Fossil Old World monkeys: The late Neogene radiation. In W. C. Hartwig (Ed.), The Primate Fossil Record (pp. 255-299). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
Jablonski, N. G., Whitfort, M. J., Roberts-Smith, N., & Xu, Q. (2000). The influence of life history and diet on the distribution of catarrhine primates during the Pleistocene in eastern Asia. Journal of Human Evolution, 39(2), 131-157. doi:10.1006/jhev.2000.0405
Jablonski, N. G. (1995). The phyletic position and systematics of the douc langurs of Southeast Asia. American Journal of Primatology, 35(3), 185-205. doi:10.1002/ajp.1350350303
Chaplin, G., Jablonski, N. G., & Cable, N. T. (1994). Physiology, thermoregulation and bipedalism. Journal of Human Evolution, 27(6), 497-510. doi:10.1006/jhev.1994.1066
Jablonski, N. G., & Chaplin, G. (1993). Origin of habitual terrestrial bipedalism in the ancestor of the Hominidae. Journal of Human Evolution, 24(4), 259-280. doi:10.1006/jhev.1993.1021
Jablonski, N. G., & Chaplin, G. (1992). The origin of hominid bipedalism re-examined. Archaeology in Oceania, 27(3), 153-160.