This specimen is a piece of the upper left maxilla of a monkey of the genus Parapapio, which was the dominant monkey in the early strata of the Turkana Basin and is common in the fossil deposits at Alia Bay, East Turkana, where this specimen was found. The teeth that are present are the upper fouth premolar to the third molar.
Parapapio appears to have filled an ecological niche similar to that occupied by savannah baboons and vervets today. The East african representatives of Parapapio are quite fragmentary and are not abundant in the fossil record although in the Turkana Basin the Parapapio remains are appear to represent four different "species". The largest of the Parapapio morphs identified in the Turkana Basin, looks similar to and is possibly related to Mandrillus.
Parapapio is much better known from South Africa, where it’s remains are plentiful and generally well-preserved, several species have been described.
