Patasola is an extinct genus of New World monkeys from the Middle Miocene (Laventan in the South American land mammal ages; 13.8 to 11.8 Ma). Its remains have been found at the Konzentrat-Lagerstätte of La Venta in the Honda Group of Colombia. The type species is Patasola magdalenae.Patasola magdalenae in the Paleobiology Database
Etymology Patasola magdalenae is named after the mythological Patasola ("one foot"), a forest spirit of the Gran Tolima region of Colombia. The species epithet refers to the Magdalena River in which valley the fossils were found.Kay & Meldrum, 1997, p.438
Description Fossils of Patasola, a small insectivorous/frugivorous primate,Kay & Meldrum, 1997, p.458 were discovered in both the La Victoria and Villavieja Formations above and below the "Monkey Beds" of the Honda Group, that has been dated to the Laventan, about 13.4 to 11.8 Ma.Kay & Meldrum, 1997, p.437Wheeler, 2010, p.133
The type mandible of Patasola magdalenae is a juvenile specimen.Kay & Meldrum, 1997, p.440 The estimated weight of Patasola was ,Silvestro, 2017, p.14 similar in size to the extant genus Leontopithecus.Defler, 2004, p.32
The genus is included in the Callitrichidae,Takai et al., 2001, p.290 after an initial description as an intermediate between the Callitrichidae and Saimiri.Tejedor, 2013, p.29
Habitat
The Honda Group, and more precisely the "Monkey Beds", are the richest site for fossil primates in South America.Rosenberger & Hartwig, 2001, p.3 It has been argued that the monkeys of the Honda Group were living in habitat that was in contact with the Amazon and Orinoco Basins, and that La Venta itself was probably seasonally dry forest.Lynch Alfaro et al., 2015, p.520 The authors of the publication about Patasola however suggests the presence of rain forest.
See also
List of primates of Colombia Lagonimico Mohanamico
References
Bibliography
Further reading