AUSTRALOPITHECUS AFARENSIS

Australopithecus afarensis was 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 of Australopithecus afarensis have 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.She was only about 3 feet, 8 inches tall. Males were somewhat taller and twice as robust (sexual dimorphism). A. afarensis is still very apelike but does have some characteristics of Homo 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. Compared to the modern and extinct great apes, A. afarensis has reduced canines and molars, although they are still relatively larger than in modern humans. A. afarensis also has a relatively small brain size (~380430 cm3) and a prognathic face (i.e. a face with forward projecting jaws). Skeletal morphology and locomotion There is considerable debate regarding the locomotor behaviour of A. afarensis. Some believe that A. afarensis was almost exclusively bipedal, while others believe that the creatures were partly arboreal. The anatomy of the hands, feet and shoulder joints in many ways favour the latter interpretation. The curvature of the finger and toe bones (Phalanges) approaches that of modern-day apes, and is suggestive of their ability to efficiently grasp branches and climb. Alternatively, the loss of an abductable great toe and therefore the ability to grasp with the foot (a feature of all other primates) suggests that A. afarensis was no longer adapted to climbing. There are a number of traits in the A. afarensis skeleton which strongly reflect bipedalism, to the extent that some researchers have suggested that bipedality evolved long before A. afarensis.

Australopithecus anamensis
Australopithecus anamensis (or Praeanthropus anamensis) is a stem-human species that lived approximately four million years ago. Nearly one hundred fossil specimens are known from Kenya and Ethiopia representing over 20 individuals The first fossilized specimen of the species, though not recognized as such at the time, was a single fragment of humerus (arm bone) found in Pliocene strata in the Kanapoi by a Harvard University research team in 1965. The specimen was tentatively assigned at the time to Australopithecus. Australopithecus anamensis possesses a mix of advanced and primitive traits. A partial tibia (the larger of the two lower leg bones) suggests that A. anamensis probably walked upright. The teeth of A. anamensis were covered with a layer of enamel much thicker than that of A. ramidus, suggesting a diet of hard-to-chew foods. A. anamensis probably lived in open woodland habitats in what is now northern Kenya and southern Ethiopia. Some characteristics: The cranial capacity of the Australopithecus anamensis is 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 hominidlike in form. The joints on their leg bones indicate bipedal gait. Around 3.9 million years Australopithecus afarensis. ago, A. anamensis evolved into

Australopithecus africanus
Australopithecus africanus was an early hominid, who lived between ~3.03 and 2.04 million years ago in the later Pliocene and early Pleistocene. In common with the older Australopithecus afarensis, A. africanus was of slender build, or gracile, and was thought to have been a direct ancestor of modern humans. Fossil remains indicate that A. africanus was significantly more like modern humans than A. afarensis, with a more human-like cranium permitting a larger brain and more humanoid facial features. A. africanus has been found at only four sites in southern Africa .

Raymond Dart became interested in fossils found at the lime mine at Taung near Kimberley, South Africa in 1924. The most promising of these was a skull of an odd ape-creature sharing human traits such as eye orbits, teeth, and, most importantly, the hole at the base of the skull over the spinal column (the foramen magnum) indicating a human-like posture. Dart assigned the specimen the name Australopithecus africanus ("southern ape of Africa"). Sir Arthur Keith, a fellow anatomist and anthropologist, suggested that the skull belonged to a young ape, most likely from an infant gorilla. It was not until 20 years later that the public accepted the new genus and that australopithecines were a true member of Homininae. Dart's theory was supported by Robert Broom. In 1938 Broom classified an adult endocranial cast having a brain capacity of 485 cc, which had been found by G. W. Barlow, as Plesianthropus transvaalensis. On April 18, 1947, Broom and John T. Robinson discovered a skull belonging to a middle-aged female,(catalogue number STS 5), while blasting at Sterkfontein. Broom classified it also as Plesianthropus transvaalensis, and it was dubbed Mrs. Ples by Broom's young coworkers (though the skull is now thought to have belonged to a young male). The lack of facial projection in comparison to apes was noted by Raymond Dart (including from Taung Child, in the picture on the left ), a trait in common with more advanced hominines. Both fossils were later classified as Australopithecus africanus. Morphology and interpretations Like A. afarensis, A. africanus the South African counterpart was generally similar in many traits, a bipedal hominid with arms slightly larger than the legs (a physical trait also found in chimpanzees). Despite its slightly more human-like cranial features, seen for example in the crania Mrs. Ples and STS 71, other more primitive features including ape-like curved fingers for tree climbing are also present. A. africanus had a pelvis that was built for slightly better bipedalism than that of A. afarensis.

Sexual dimorphism Recent evidence regarding modern human sexual dimorphism (physical differences between men and women) in the lumbar spine has been seen in pre-modern primates such as A. africanus. This dimorphism has been seen as an evolutionary adaptation of females to better bear lumbar load during pregnancy, an adaptation that non-bipedal primates would not need to make.

A 2011 study using ratios of strontium isotopes in teeth suggested that A. africanus and Paranthropus robustus groups in southern Africa were patrilocal: women tended to settle farther from their region of birth than men did.

Australopithecus garhi
Australopithecus garhi is a gracile australopithecine species whose fossils were discovered in 1996 by a research team led by Ethiopian paleontologist Berhane Asfaw and Tim White, an American paleontologist.The hominin remains are believed to be a human ancestor species and the final missing link between the Australopithecus genus and the human genus, Homo. Tim White was the scientist to find the first of the key A. garhi fossils in 1996 in the Bouri Formation, located in the Middle Awash of Ethiopia's Afar Depression. The species was confirmed and established as A. garhi on November 20, 1997 by the Ethiopian paleoanthropologist Yohannes Haile-Selassie. The species epithet "garhi" means "surprise" in the local Afar language. Morphology and interpretations The traits of A. garhi fossils such as BOU-VP-12/130 are somewhat distinctive from traits typically seen in Australopithecus afarensis and Australopithecus africanus. An example of the distinction can be seen when comparing the Hadar maxilla (A. afarensis) to the Bouri specimen of A. garhi. The cranial capacity of A. garhi measures 450cc, the same size as other australopithecines. The mandible classified as Asfaw et al. has a morphology generally believed to be compatible with the same species, yet it is possible that another hominin species may have been found within the same deposits. Studies made on the premolars and molar teeth have a few similarities with those of Paranthropus boisei since they are larger than any other gracile form of australopithecine. It has been suggested that if A. garhi is ancestral to Homo (i.e. Homo habilis) the maxillary morphology would have undergone a rapid evolutionary change in roughly 200,000 and 300,000 years.

Australopithecus anamensis
Australopithecus anamensis (or Praeanthropus anamensis) is a stem-human species that lived approximately four million years ago. Nearly one hundred fossil specimens are known from Kenya and Ethiopia representing over 20 individuals The first fossilized specimen of the species, though not recognized as such at the time, was a single fragment of humerus (arm bone) found in Pliocene strata in the Kanapoi by a Harvard University research team

in 1965. The specimen was tentatively assigned at the time to Australopithecus. Australopithecus anamensis possesses a mix of advanced and primitive traits. A partial tibia (the larger of the two lower leg bones) suggests that A. anamensis probably walked upright. The teeth of A. anamensis were covered with a layer of enamel much thicker than that of A. ramidus, suggesting a diet of hard-to-chew foods. A. anamensis probably lived in open woodland habitats in what is now northern Kenya and southern Ethiopia. Some characteristics: The cranial capacity of the Australopithecus anamensis is 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 hominidlike in form. The joints on their leg bones indicate bipedal gait. Around 3.9 million years Australopithecus afarensis. ago, A. anamensis evolved into

Homo habilis
Homo habilis is a species of the genus Homo, which lived from approximately 2.33 to 1.4 million years ago. The discovery and description of this species is credited to both Mary and Louis Leakey, who found fossils in Tanzania, East Africa, between 1962 and 1964. In its appearance and morphology, H. habilis is thus the least similar to modern humans of all species in the genus. H. habilis was short and had disproportionately long arms compared to modern humans; however, it had a less protruding face than the australopithecines from which it is thought to have descended. H. habilis had a cranial capacity slightly less than half of the size of modern humans. Despite the ape-like morphology of the bodies, H. habilis remains are often accompanied by primitive stone tools. Homo habilis has often been thought to be the ancestor of the more gracile and sophisticated Homo ergaster, which in turn gave rise to the more human-appearing species, Homo erectus. Compared to australopithecines, H. habilis's brain capacity of around 600 cm was on average 50% larger than australopithecines, but considerably

smaller than the 1350 to 1450 cm range of modern Homo sapiens. These hominins were smaller than modern humans, on average standing no more than 1.3 m (4 ft 3 in) tall. Most experts assume the intelligence and social organization of H. habilis were more sophisticated than typical australopithecines or chimpanzees. Yet despite tool usage, H. habilis was not the master hunter that its sister species (or descendants) proved to be, as there is ample fossil evidence that H. habilis was a staple in the diet of large predatory animals such as Dinofelis, a large scimitar-toothed predatory cat the size of a jaguar. Homo habilis is thought to be the ancestor of the lankier and more sophisticated Homo ergaster, which in turn gave rise to the more humanappearing species Homo erectus. Debates continue over whether H. habilis is a direct human ancestor, and whether all of the known fossils are properly attributed to the species. Homo habilis co-existed with other Homo-like bipedal primates, such as Paranthropus boisei, some of which prospered for many millennia. However, H. habilis, possibly because of its early tool innovation and a less specialized diet, became the precursor of an entire line of new species, whereas Paranthropus boisei and its robust relatives disappeared from the fossil record. Homo habilis may also have coexisted with Homo erectus in Africa for a period of 500,000 years.

Homo erectus
Homo erectus is an extinct species of hominid that lived from about 1.8 million years ago and lasted until 200.000 years ago. The species originated in Africa and spread as far as India, China and Java. Throughout much of the 20th century, anthropologists debated the role of H. erectus in human evolution. Early in the century, however, due to discoveries on Java and at Zhoukoudian, it was believed that modern humans first evolved in Asia. A few naturalists (Charles Darwin most prominent among them) predicted that humans' earliest ancestors were African: he pointed out that chimpanzees and gorillas, who are human relatives, live only in Africa. It is now believed that H. erectus is a descendant of earlier genera such as Ardipithecus and Australopithecus, or early Homo-species such as H. habilis or H. ergaster. H. habilis and H. erectus coexisted for several thousand years, and may represent separate lineages of a common ancestor. A partial skeleton was discovered in 2001. The fossils are about 1.8 million years old. The remains were first discovered in 1991 by Georgian scientist, David Lordkipanidze, accompanied by an international team that

unearthed the remains. Implements and animal bones were found alongside the ancient human remains. At around 1000 cc brain volume, the skull D2700 is dated to 1.77 million years old and in good condition offering insights in comparison to the modern human cranial morphology. Homo erectus exhibits strong sexual dimorphism with males being significantly larger than females. Subsequently, four fossil skeletons were found, showing a species primitive in its skull and upper body but with relatively advanced spines and lower limbs, providing greater mobility.

Controversy
Many paleoanthropologists still debate the definition of H. erectus and H. ergaster as separate species. Several scholars suggested to drop the taxon Homo erectus, and suggested instead to equate H. erectus with Archaic H. sapiens. Some call H. ergaster the direct African ancestor of H. erectus, proposing that it emigrated out of Africa and migrated into Asia, branching into a distinct species. Most dispense with the species-name ergaster.

Anatomy
The frontal bone is less sloped and the dental arcade smaller than the australopithecines; the face is more orthognatic (less protrusive) than either the australopithecines' or H. habilis's, with large brow-ridges and less prominent zygomata (cheekbones). These early hominins stood about 1.79 m, and were more robust than modern humans. Use of tools H. erectus, however, used comparatively primitive tools. It has been suggested that H. erectus may have been the first hominid to use rafts to travel over oceans. Homo erectus was probably the first hominid to live in a huntergatherer society, and anthropologists such as Richard Leakey believe that it was socially more like modern humans. H. erectus/ergaster is thought to be the first hominid to hunt in coordinated groups, use complex tools, and care for infirm or weak companions.

Homo neanderthalensis
Neanderthals were members of a group of the genus Homo, now extinct, known from Pleistocene specimens found in Europe and parts of western and central Asia. Neanderthals are classified alternatively as a subspecies of

Homo sapiens (Homo sapiens neanderthalensis) or as a separate human species (Homo neanderthalensis). Neanderthals lived from about 130,000 years ago until 28.000 years ago. Neanderthal cranial capacity is thought to have been as large as that of modern humans (1500 cc), perhaps larger, indicating their brain size may have been comparable, or larger, as well. In 2008, a group of scientists created a study using three-dimensional computer-assisted reconstructions of Neanderthal infants based on fossils found in Russia and Syria. The study showed Neanderthal and modern human brains were the same size at birth, but by adulthood, the Neandertal brain was larger than the modern human brain. They were much stronger than modern humans, having particularly strong arms and hands. Males stood 164168 cm and females about 152156 cm tall. Neanderthal skulls were first discovered in Engis Caves (fr), in what is now Belgium (1829) by Philippe-Charles Schmerling.The bones of over 400 Neanderthals have been found since. Neanderthal anatomy Neanderthal anatomy was more robust than anatomically modern humans. Neanderthal behavior Neanderthals were largely carnivorous and apex predators; however, new studies do indicate that they had cooked vegetables in their diet. They made advanced tools, had a language (the nature of which is debated) and lived in complex social groups. The Molodova archaeological site in eastern Ukraine suggests some Neanderthals built dwellings using animal bones. A building was made of mammoth skulls, jaws, tusks and leg bones, and had 25 hearths inside.