8/22/2019 Homo Nids

1/4

About 4.4 millions years ago, a different type of primate emerged.

The first bipedal primates are classified by Paleontologists as

hominids, and these first hominids had not yet developed the large

brain, teeth structure, and skeletal features identified as Homo.

Instead, they predate, and sometimes overlap the first Homo species

and are known as the Australopithecines. The two types of

australopithecines are gracile and robust

AUSTRALOPITHECUS ANAMENSIS

4.0-3.9 million years ago

This species has recently been found in the Lake Turkana region in Kenya and dates back to 4 million years ago.

Though not recognized as such for 30 years, the first Australopithecus anamensis discovery occurred in the Kanapoi

region of East Lake Turkana in 1965 by a Harvard University expedition. The initial find consisted of a partial left

humerus. Aside from a solitary molar discovery in 1982, virtually no further A. anamensis specimens were found

until the early 1990's, at which time, Meave Leakey and other affiliates of the National Museums of Kenya organizeda research team for the Kanapoi region.

Around 3.9 million years ago, A. anamensisevolved into Australopithecus afarensis. It provides the first fossil

evidence as the first and earliest biped. The Australopithecus anamensis tibia indicates bipedalism. It is the first

species to walk upright!

Some characteristics:

The cranial capacity of the Australopi thecus anamensisis unknown. Male height is around 5 feet, while the females

are around 43. The male weight is around 110 lbs, while the female weight is around 70 lbs. Their teeth and jaws

are hominid but have some similarities to the chimpanzee. They retained ape-like crania and dentition, while also

exhibiting rather advanced postcrania, more or less typically hominid-like in form. The joints on their leg bones

indicate bipedal gait.

AUSTRALOPITHECUS AFARENSIS

Australopithecus afar ensis

Australopithecus afar ensiswas named as a species in 1978 by D. Jonhanson and

T. White. It is one of the better know Australopithecines because a large number

of fossils have been found and attributed to this species. Fragments of more than

300 individuals ofAustralopithecus afar ensishave been discovered so far in

Tanzania, Kenya and Ethiopia. Australopithecus afarensis lived from

approximately 4.1 to 2.7 million years ago in northeastern Africa.

The most famous specimen is Lucy, a nearly complete skeleton found in 1974

at Hadar, Ethiopia. The illustration on the right shows "Lucy" in comparison

with a modern human female. She was only about 3 feet, 8 inches tall. Males

were somewhat taller and twice as robust (sexual dimorphism).

A. afarensisis still very apelike but does have some characteristics ofHomo sapiens. For example,Lucys overall body size, brain size and skull

shape resemble a chimpanzee. However, A. afarensis walked upright like a

human, not like a chimp. Evidence for bipedalism comes from skeletal fossils

showing pelvis articulation and femur (thigh bone) similar to humans. Irrefutable evidence comes from the

Laetoli footprints. There is no tool making associated with A. afar ensis

8/22/2019 Homo Nids

2/4

. The distinctive characteristics ofA. afar ensiswere:

a low forehead bony ridge over the eyes a flat nose and no chin more humanlike teeth, and the pelvis and leg bones resembled those of

modern man.

Females were smaller than males.

Many scientists believe Australopithecus afarensiswas still active in trees because the fingers and toe bones of the

species were curved and longer than the ones of the modern human. Also, its upper torso is stronger than ours and its

arm and leg lengths are similar which also indicates the species was adapted to tree climbing.

AUSTRALOPITHECUS AFRICANUS

3.0-2.5 million years ago

Raymond Dart discovered the first australopithecine in November, 1924. The fossil was found at a lime quarry at

Taung, southwest of Johannesburg, and was of an immature apelike individual. The fossil existed of the face, part of

the cranium, the complete lower jaw and a brain endocast, formed when sand inside the skull hardened to rock,

recording the shape of the brain.

Dart stated that the Taung individual was an earlier form of human, and named it Australopithecus africanus

("southern ape from Africa"). Australopithecus africanus appeared to be apelike in having a protruding face and

small brain, but had distinctly unapelike dentition, including small canines and large, flat molars. A bipedal posture

was again indicated by the central position of the foramen magnum, and by the anatomy of the spine, pelvis, and

femur

AUSTRALOPITHECUS GARHI

Australopithecus garhi was believed tohave existed between 2 and 3

million years ago in the middle Awashregion of Ethiopia. The firstparts of garhi to be discovered were theskull, teeth, and limb bones

and were found by Berhane Asfaw andTim White. This was a significant

and surprising find because garhi had asmall brain, yet used and made

tools to crack open the limb bones ofanimals in order to get to thenutrient-rich marrow at the center of thebone. Fittingly, the word

garhi means surprise in the local Afar

language of Ethiopia. Before thediscovery of A. garhi, the first tool userswere thought to be of theHomo genus. A. Garhi, therefore, is

thought to have been a link betweenAustralopithecus and Homo because ofthe small brain/tool usingcombination. A. garhi appeared to exist during the hypothetical tunnel

of time, from which species went in at about 3 million years not using

t

http://www.modernhumanorigins.com/garhi.html

8/22/2019 Homo Nids

3/4

ools, not very well adapted to their environment, and with small brainsand came out at about 2 million years ago using tools, well adapted to their environment, and with large brains.

AUSTRALOPITHECUS BOSEI

A. boisei existed between 2.1 and 1.1 million years ago. It was similar torobustus, but the face and cheek teeth were even

more massive, some molars being up to 2 cm across. The brain size is very similar to robustus, about 530 cc. A few expertsconsiderboisei and robustus to be variants of the same species.

Australopithecus aethiopicus, robustus and boisei are known as robust australopithecines, because their skulls in particular

are more heavily built. They have never been serious candidates for being direct human ancestors. Many authorities nowclassify them in the genusParanthropus

Homo habilis

H. habilis, "handy man", was so called because of evidence of tools found with its remains. Habilis existed between 2.4 and1.5 million years ago. It is very similar to australopithecines in many ways. The face is still primitive, but it projects less thaninA. africanus. The back teeth are smaller, but still considerably larger than in modern humans. The average brain size, at

650 cc, is considerably larger than in australopithecines. Brain size varies between 500 and 800 cc, overlapping the

australopithecines at the low end andH. erectusat the high end. The brain shape is also more humanlike. The bulge ofBroca's area, essential for speech, is visible in one habilis brain cast, and indicates it waspossibly capable of rudimentaryspeech.Habilis is thought to have been about 127 cm (5'0") tall, and about 45 kg (100 lb) in weight, although females mayhave been smaller.

Habilis has been a controversial species. Originally, some scientists did not accept its validity, believing that all

habilisspecimens should be assigned to either the australopithecines orHomo erectus.H. habilis is now fully accepted as aspecies, but it is widely thought that the 'habilis' specimens have too wide a range of variation for a single species, and that

some of the specimens should be placed in one or more other species. One suggested species which is accepted by manyscientists isHomo rudolfensis, which would contain fossils

Homo georgicus

This species was named in 2002 to contain fossils found in Dmanisi, Georgia, which seem intermediate between H. habilis

andH. erectus. The fossils are about 1.8 million years old, consisting of three partial skulls and three lower jaws. The brainsizes of the skulls vary from 600 to 780 cc. The height, as estimated from a foot bone, would have been about 1.5 m (4'11").A partial skeleton was also discovered in 2001 but no details are available on it yet

Homo ergaster

Some scientists classify some African erectus specimens as belonging to a separate species,Homo ergaster, which differsfrom the AsianH. erectus fossils in some details of the skull (e.g. the brow ridges differ in shape, and erectus would have alarger brain size). Under this scheme,H. ergasterwould include fossils such as theTurkana boy

Homo antecessor

Homo antecessorwas named in 1977 from fossils found at the Spanish cave site of Atapuerca, dated to at least 780,000years ago, making them the oldest confirmed European hominids. The mid-facial area ofantecessorseems very modern, butother parts of the skull such as the teeth, forehead and browridges are much more primitive. Many scientists are doubtfulabout the validity ofantecessor, partly because its definition is based on a juvenile specimen, and feel it may belong toanother species. (Bermudez de Castro et al. 1997; Kunzig 1997, Carbonell et al. 1995)

Homo sapiens(archaic) (also Homo heidelbergensis)

Archaic forms ofHomo sapiens first appear about 500,000 years ago. The term covers a diverse group of skulls which havefeatures of bothHomo erectus and modern humans. The brain size is larger than erectus and smaller than most modernhumans, averaging about 1200 cc, and the skull is more rounded than inerectus. The skeleton and teeth are usually lessrobust than erectus, but more robust than modern humans. Many still have large brow ridges and receding foreheads and

chins. There is no clear dividing line between late erectusand archaicsapiens, and many fossils between 500,000 and200,000 years ago are difficult to classify as one or the other

Homo sapiens neanderthalensis(also Homo neanderthalensis)

http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/habilis.gifhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/habilis.gifhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/habilis.gifhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/habilis.gifhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/15000.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/15000.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/15000.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/specimen.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/specimen.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/specimen.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/specimen.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/specimen.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/specimen.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/specimen.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/specimen.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/specimen.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/specimen.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/specimen.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/specimen.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/specimen.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/specimen.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/specimen.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/specimen.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/15000.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/habilis.gifhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/habilis.gif

8/22/2019 Homo Nids

4/4

Neandertal (or Neanderthal) man existed between 230,000 and 30,000 years ago. The average brain size is slightly larger

than that of modern humans, about 1450 cc, but this is probably correlated with their greater bulk. The brain case however islonger and lower than that of modern humans, with a marked bulge at the back of the skull. Like erectus, they had a

protruding jaw and receding forehead. The chin was usually weak. The midfacial area also protrudes, a feature that is notfound in erectus orsapiens and may be an adaptation to cold. There are other minor anatomical differences from modernhumans, the most unusual being some peculiarities of the shoulder blade, and of the pubic bone in the pelvis. Neandertals

mostly lived in cold climates, and their body proportions are similar to those of modern cold-adapted peoples: short and

solid, with short limbs. Men averaged about 168 cm (5'6") in height. Their bones are thick and heavy, and show signs ofpowerful muscle attachments. Neandertals would have been extraordinarily strong by modern standards, andtheir skeletonsshow that they endured brutally hard lives. A large number of tools and weapons have been found, more advanced than thoseofHomo erectus. Neandertals were formidable hunters, and are the first people known to have buried their dead, with the

oldest known burial site being about 100,000 years old. They are found throughout Europe and the Middle East. WesternEuropean Neandertals usually have a more robust form, and are sometimes called "classic Neandertals". Neandertals foundelsewhere tend to be less excessively robust. (Trinkaus and Shipman 1992; Trinkaus and Howells 1979; Gore 1996)

Homo sapiens sapiens(modern)

Modern forms ofHomo sapiens first appear about 195,000 years ago. Modern humans have an average brain size of about1350 cc. The forehead rises sharply, eyebrow ridges are very small or more usually absent, the chin is prominent, and the

skeleton is very gracile. About 40,000 years ago, with the appearance of theCro-Magnonculture,tool kits started becoming

markedly more sophisticated, using a wider variety of raw materials such as bone and antler, and containing new implementsfor making clothing, engraving and sculpting. Fine artwork, in the form of decorated tools, beads, ivory carvings of humansand animals, clay figurines, musical instruments, andspectacular cave paintingsappeared over the next 20,000 years.(Leakey 1994)

Even within the last 100,000 years, the long-term trends towards smaller molars and decreased robustness can be discerned.The face, jaw and teeth of Mesolithic humans (about 10,000 years ago) are about 10% more robust than ours. UpperPaleolithic humans (about 30,000 years ago) are about 20 to 30% more robust than the modern condition in Europe andAsia. These are considered modern humans, although they are sometimes termed "primitive". Interestingly, some modern

humans (aboriginal Australians) have tooth sizes more typical of archaic sapiens. The smallest tooth sizes are found in those

areas where food-processing techniques have been used for the longest time. This is a probable example of natural selectionwhich has occurred within the last 10,000 years (Brace 1983).

http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/spelling.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/spelling.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/spelling.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/rodeo.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/rodeo.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/rodeo.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/rodeo.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/cromagnon.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/cromagnon.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/cromagnon.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/tools2.gifhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/tools2.gifhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/tools2.gifhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/tools2.gifhttp://www.culture.fr/culture/arcnat/chauvet/en/gvpda-d.htmhttp://www.culture.fr/culture/arcnat/chauvet/en/gvpda-d.htmhttp://www.culture.fr/culture/arcnat/chauvet/en/gvpda-d.htmhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/specimen.htmlhttp://www.culture.fr/culture/arcnat/chauvet/en/gvpda-d.htmhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/tools2.gifhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/tools2.gifhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/cromagnon.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/rodeo.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/rodeo.htmlhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/spelling.html