Egarapithecus narcisoi, a new genus of Pliopithecidae (Primates, Catarrhini) from the Late Miocene of Spain

Pliopithecid remains from the Spanish locality of Torrent de Febulines (Lat e Vallesian, MN 10), consisting of right and left mandibular fragments with partial tooth rows and an isolated P-3 probably belonging to the same indi vidual, are described and assigned to Egarapithecus narcisoi gen. et sp. no v. (Pliopithecidae, Crouzeliinae). This is a highly derived species dated a t around 9 Ma (Ma = 10(6) years), representing the latest appearance of the family in the European continent. Morphologically it is the most distant m ember from the inferred primitive pliopithecid morphotype, displaying many autapomorphies that notably accentuate those of the remaining Crouzeliinae. A cladistic analysis based on lower cheek teeth, performed in order to ten tatively assess the phylogenetic relationships of Ega- rapithecus within th e Crouzeliinae, indicates that several equally parsimonious cladograms are possible in the light of current evidence. This is due to uncertainties reg arding the position of Plesiopliopithecus and Crouzelia there considered di stinct general, as a result of missing characters and the significant degre e of homoplasy apparently involved in crouzeliine dental evolution. Whether Egarapithecus is more closely related to Crouzelia or to Anapithecus (the latter hypothesis tentatively favored here) cannot be definitively resolved with the currently available material and deserves further investigation. It is clear, however, that Egarapithecus is one of the more derived and spe cialized members of the Pliopithecidae. (C) 2001 Wiley-Liss, Inc.