Relatively Reduced Primary Visual Area

The primary visual cortical visual area (area V1, area 17; striate cortex) occupies a smaller portion of the cerebral mantle in humans than in the other great apes, so it might be thought to have been reduced in size in human evolution.  However, area V1 occupies about the same absolute volume or surface area of tissue as in great apes.  The apparent reduction of area V1 would seem therefore to reflect the increase in size of other parts of the cortex rather than the reduction of V1.