Observations on mid‐tertiary hominoids Sivapithecus and Ramapithecus

Abstract Detailed palaeontological analyses of the hominoids of the Miocene indicate the occurrence of forms belonging to Pongidae and Hominidae. Of these, Sivapithecus (Pongidae) with three contained species and Ramapithecus (Hominidae) with two distinct species can be recognized. These two families Pongidae and Hominidae were sufficiently well defined and distinct by the late Miocene about 14 million years ago. The author has discussed in brief the status of a few interesting finds of Sivapithecus and Ramapithecus based on the study of the originals preserved in India and America.