ABSTRACT
Chapter 2 comprises an overview of the superfamily Hominoidea including details of the taxonomic relationships among the major lineages, as well as a recap of evolutionary timelines and trajectories. By examining hominoid diversity in the evolutionary past, I explain how this once diverse group of primates journeyed from the mainstream of the Miocene to the margins of the present. Additionally, this chapter presents salient behavioural and ecological data from the living ape taxa. All of these species, with one exception (us), are faced with the threat of extinction. This chapter concludes by examining the present plight of apes through the lens of evolutionary constraint.
