The history of primate evolution is filled with the evolution of new species but also countless extinctions. While factors in each case are different, certain main factors continuously contributed to the extinction of primates. A high proportion of primates became extinct at the end of the Miocene and another extinction occurred at the end of the Pliocene and during the Pleistocene. Drag the main extinction cause to the period in which it occurred.

Although no scientist has been able to discover with 100% certainty the cause of extinction of primates in relation to different periods of the planet. These extinctions are believed to have occurred as follows:

Pleistocene period - human hunting
Pliocene Period - climate change
Miocene Period - competition

Pilocene is considered the least ancient period. In that period the vegetation was similar to the vegetation we know today. However, this period is marked by the cessation of exchange of currents between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, which resulted in climatic changes that many primates were unable to adapt and ended up dying.

The period called Miocene is marked by the formation of mountains and the appearance of several mammals. As the fauna in this period was abundant, the vegetation became more repressed and could only be found in specific places. This generated strong competition among primates, causing many of them to find no food and end up dying, or to die due to violent fights over vegetation.

The period called Pleistocene, in turn, is marked by the evolution of the human being. This period featured species of homo erectus, which was a great hunter. As you may have already realized, hunting was essential to the survival of human beings, who probably killed countless primates without taking into account the breeding season, causing primate extinction.