Micropithecus
Furthermore, in the initial description of the genus and type species, it was pointed out that the morphology of the face of these fossil finds most closely resembles gibbons living today.The head-torso length is roughly equivalent to the white-fronted capuchin monkeys, which are only about 35 centimetres tall, and is slightly smaller than that of the fossil of Aeolopithecus, now considered a junior synonym of Propliopithecus.This has been interpreted as a presumed consequence of less specialisation on a particular diet, giving this species a morphological proximity to the more primitive, much older, Old World monkeys from East Africa.[3] An explanation for these different characteristics can be found if one considers the palaeoecology: About 19 million years ago, what is now Uganda and western Kenya were predominantly covered by forests, fostered by a warm and humid tropical climate.In such biotopes, it was concluded, the ancestors of Micropithecus leakeyorum gradually adapted to a broader diet that included harder plant fibres.