Leptadapis

Leptadapis Temporal range: Middle Eocene ~40–37 Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N ↓
L. magnus
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Primates
Family:	†Adapidae
Subfamily:	†Adapinae
Genus:	†Leptadapis Gervais, 1876
Species
†L. assolicus †L. filholi Godinot & Couette, 2008 †L. capellae Crusafont-Pairo, 1967 †L. leenhardti Stehlin, 1912 †L. magnus Filhol, 1874 †L. ruetimeyeri Stehlin, 1912
Synonyms
Paradapis Tattersall & Schwartz, 1983

Leptadapis is an extinct genus of adapiform primate that lived in Europe during the middle Eocene.^[1] Fossils of the genus have been found in the Escanilla Formation of Spain,^[2] at the sites of La Bouffie and Perrière in France,^[3] and at Egerkingen in Switzerland.^[2]

Palaeobiology

Palaeoecology

Dental microwear of Leptadapis magnus from La Bouffie, a closed canopy tropical rainforest, shows that its dietary habit was a mixture of folivory and frugivory. In the more open woodland of Perrière, however, L. magnus strictly fed on leaves.^[3]

L. magnus skull

References

1. Gebo 2002, p. 28.
2. "Fossilworks: Leptadapis (Paradapis)". Paleobiology Database. Retrieved 24 November 2023.
3. Ramdarshan, Anusha; Merceron, Gildas; Marivaux, Laurent (19 November 2011). "Spatial and temporal ecological diversity amongst eocene primates of france: Evidence from teeth". American Journal of Physical Anthropology. 147 (2): 201–216. doi:10.1002/ajpa.21638. ISSN 0002-9483. Retrieved 8 November 2025 – via Wiley Online Library.

Bibliography

• Gebo, D.L. (2002). "Adapiformes: Phylogeny and adaptation". In Hartwig, W.C. (ed.). The Primate Fossil Record. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-08141-2. OCLC 47254191 – via Google Books.