Oct 28, 2010 13:06 GMT  ·  By
Primates may have originated in the Middle East more than 40 million years ago
   Primates may have originated in the Middle East more than 40 million years ago

According to a new set of investigations, it would appear that the origins of all primate species are not necessarily in Africa, but rather in the Middle East, in regions around Libya.

This conclusion comes from a series of archaeological digs, which revealed the existence of no less then four primates that lived in the Libya millions of years ago. The lemur-like creatures predate the oldest known African primates.

For many years, paleoanthropology experts have believed that the earliest primates, monkeys, apes, and hominids originated in Africa, in areas around modern-day Ethiopia, which received the name the Cradle of Life.

There were numerous evidence to support this theory, but now experts found that these new remnants put a dent in the old belief. The finding carries with it significant consequences.

For once, it would have made sense to have migration waves out of Africa, if hominids had appeared there. But all migration theories are actually based on the fact that humans came from this continent.

Of course, the discovery of the new animals does not exclude the possibility that the primates developed to a point where hominids separated evolutionary in Africa. They may have first migrated to the continent, and then back out.

According to a new study detailing the discoveries, the four fossils that were discovered in the Middle East lived more than 40 million years ago, and belonged to three distinct taxonomic families.

Carnegie Museum of Natural History paleontologist Christopher Beard called these animals the “Dawn Monkey,” because these fossils are the precursors of every other species that came afterwards.

The expert is also a coauthor of the new investigation detailing the findings, which was published in the October 28 issue of the esteemed scientific journal Nature.

He explains that, 40 million years ago, there were no species in Africa that could compare to the ones discovered in Libya. This means that the latter preceded the former by millennia.

“These discoveries are exciting and very informative, [but] more than anything else, these discoveries indicate that we still have a lot to learn,” explains expert William Jungers.

The scientist, who holds an appointment as a paleoanthropologist at the Stony Brook University, was not involved in the new investigation, Wired reports.