Tarsier

Tarsiers are haplorrhine primates of the family Tarsiidae, which is itself the lone extant family within the infraorder Tarsiiformes. Although the group was once more widespread, all the species living today are found in the islands of Southeast Asia.

Evolutionary history

Fossil record

Fossils of tarsiiform primates are found in Asia, Europe, and North America, with disputed fossils from Africa, but extant tarsiers are restricted to several Southeast Asian islands, including the Philippines, Malaysia, and Indonesia. The fossil record indicates that their dentition has not changed much, except in size, in the past 45 million years.

Within the family Tarsiidae, there are two extinct genera, Xanthorhysis and Afrotarsius. However, the placement of Afrotarsius is not certain, and it is sometimes listed in its own family, Afrotarsiidae, within the infraorder Tarsiiformes, or considered an anthropoid primate.

So far, three fossil species of the genus Tarsius are known from the fossil record: