15 mya, resulting in increased blood pressure, which in turn led to increased activity, and a greater ability to build up fat reserves. The palaeoenvironment of late Miocene Austria indicates an abundance of fruiting trees and honey for nine or ten months out of the year, and Dryopithecus may have relied on these fat reserves during the late winter. High uric acid levels in the blood are also associated with increased intelligence. Dryopithecus males had larger canines than females, which is associated with high levels of aggression in modern primates. Paleoecology The remains of Dryopithecus are often associated with several large mammals, such as elephants (e. g., though not limited to, Gomphotherium), rhinos (e. g., Lartetotherium), pigs (e. g., Listriodon), antelope (e. g., Miotragocerus), horses (e. g., Hippotherium), hyaenas (e. g., Protictitherium), and big cats (e. g., Pseudaelurus). Other associated primates are the great apes Hispanopithecus, Anoiapithecus, and Pierolapithecus; and the monkey Pliopithecus. These fauna are consistent with a warm, forested, paratropical wetland environment, and it may have lived in a seasonal climate. For the Austrian Dryopithecus, plants such as Prunus, grapevines, black mulberry, strawberry trees, hickory, and chestnuts may have been important fruit sources; and the latter two, oak, beech, elm, and pine honey sources. The late Miocene was the beginning of a drying trend in Europe. Increasing seasonality and dry spells in the Mediterranean region and the emergence of a Mediterranean climate likely caused the replacement of forestland and woodland by open shrubland; and the uplift of the Alps caused tropical and warm-climate vegetation in Central Europe to retreat in favor of mid-latitude and alpine flora. This likely led to the extinction of great apes in Europe. See also References Prehistoric apes Miocene primates Fossil taxa described in 1856 Prehistoric primate genera Miocene primates of Europe