Seeing in Stereo: The Ecology and Evolution of Primate Binocular Vision and Stereopsis

Primates are the most visually adapted order of mammals. There is a rich history within anthropology of proposed explanations for the adaptive significance of binocular vision, especially pertaining to primate origins and evolution. Depth perception and orbit morphology have been hypothesized to be functionally related to specialized locomotor or feeding behaviors. Many of these arguments continue to this day. An understanding of specific primate visual adaptations, including binocular vision, can shed light on these long-term and heated debates.