Dryopithecus

Dryopithecus Temporal range: Serravallian–Tortonian 12.5–11.1 Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N ↓
Mandible fragment of D. fontani from Saint-Gaudens, France (Middle Miocene, 25 mya); cast from Museum national d'histoire naturelle, Paris
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Primates
Suborder:	Haplorhini
Infraorder:	Simiiformes
Family:	Hominidae
Subfamily:	Homininae
Tribe:	†Dryopithecini
Genus:	†Dryopithecus Lartet, 1856[1]
Species[3]
†D. fontani[1] Lartet, 1856 ?†D. carinthiacus[2] Mottl, 1957

Dryopithecus is a genus of extinct great apes from the middle–late Miocene boundary of Europe 12.5 to 11.1 million years ago (mya). Since its discovery in 1856, the genus has been subject to taxonomic turmoil, with numerous new species being described from single remains based on minute differences amongst each other, and the fragmentary nature of the holotype specimen makes differentiating remains difficult. There is currently only one uncontested species, the type species D. fontani, though there may be more. The genus is placed into the tribe Dryopithecini, which is either an offshoot of orangutans, African apes, or is its own separate branch.

A male specimen was estimated to have weighed 44 kg (97 lb) in life. Dryopithecus likely predominantly ate ripe fruit from trees, suggesting a degree of suspensory behaviour to reach them, though the anatomy of a humerus and femur suggest a greater reliance on walking on all fours (quadrupedalism). The face was similar to gorillas, and males had longer canines than females, which is typically correlated with high levels of aggression. They lived in a seasonal, paratropical climate, and may have built up fat reserves for winter. European great apes likely went extinct during a drying and cooling trend in the Late Miocene which caused the retreat of warm-climate forests.