Primatology only exists because humans have a unique place within the Primates. No human would pay any more attention to this group of mammals than to any other group of living creatures were it not for our unique interest in understanding our own biological nature. It is not exactly a branch of zoology or mammalogy, just as anthropology is not exactly a branch of primatology. In this sense, traditional subject oriented 'disciplines' are defined by common goals, research questions, terminology and methodology while object oriented 'fields' of study are united only by a common target of investigation. Examples of primate related disciplines might include anatomy, physiology, ecology, ethology, taxonomy, geology or neurology.
Primates are one of the more diverse groups of mammals.
In size range, they are similar to the order Carnivora. Primates are largely tropical creatures. Natural populations occur in the neotropical region of South America, through Central America as far north as southern Mexico, in northwestern and throughout sub- Saharan Africa, in the southern part of the Arabian peninsula, on the island of Madagascar, throughout the Indian subcontinent and southern China, in northeastern China and Japan, throughout Southeast Asia and Sundaland, and into Wallacea. Primates are absent from New Guinea, Australia, and the oceanic islands. As a group, primates eat a wide range of foods, including fruits, leaves, shoots, flowers, lichens, fungi, nectar, barks, gums, invertebrates, and vertebrates.