Table 1.

Comparison of Old World and New World Monkeys

Feature	Old World Monkeys	New World Monkeys
Origin	Africa & Asia	Americas
Body Size	Medium to large	Small to medium
Nose	Downward facing nose (catarrhine) and nostrils	Flat nosed (platyrrhine) with nostrils facing sideways
Tail	Non-grasping; Ischial callosities (sitting pads)	Prehensile
Teeth	8 premolars	12 premolars
Hands	Opposable thumbs; fingernails & toenails	Thumb is in same plane as other digits; no fingernails
Ears	Tympanic membrane connected by bony tube	Tympanic membrane connected by bony ring
Habitat	Wide range, mostly on ground, tendency for single male multi-female social groups	Small range, arboreal, tendency for single-female and multi-male social groups
Infant Care	Males rarely contribute	Males contribute
Diet	Omnivores, foraging plants, insects, small animals	Nuts, berries, insects