Over the last couple of decades the finding of numbers of important fossil discoveries in Africa which were bipedal primates. Biped; terrestrial locomotion where an organism moves by two feet also considers bipedalism. That bipedal locomotion sets modern humans apart from all other living primates. The origin of bipedalism has been argued about by how it was the adoption of early hominin fossil record (that was found) had adaptive shifts locomotion over the series of time. Which illustrate the features of hominid, the hominin fossil that gives solid grounds of evidence.…
The shape of their body gives it a helpfully way for them to be bipedal. The centrally placed foramen magnum allows for them to stand a bit straight. Also, the pelvis was bowl shaped and there was a show of lumbar lordosis. Although, they still had longer arms compared to modern humans. Their foot also showed a bit of difference, rigid, abducted hallux allowing to grasp which gives an idea of them holding on to being arboreality.…
Ardi's foot bones appeared to have a divergent large toe with a rigid foot. Her pelvis showed she had tree climbing and bipedal abilities. Australopithecus afarensis Australopithecus afarensis was one of the longest-lived and well known early human species.…
The natural selection would have allowed smaller hominins to survive a limited diet on a small island, therefore H. floresiensis first became smaller as the mandible at Mata Menge suggests and became larger over time. More remains will need to be found to determine if the mandible is from a normal sized hominin or just a small individual of the population. Mutation could have come from a genetic abnormality and with a small number of hominins on the island, the mutation could have become the normal for the population due to genetic drift or the founder effect. Genetic flow could account for more than size. The sharing of genetic material between Australopithecus and H. erectus could clarify the body shape of the Australopithecus and the head shape of the H. erectus.…
Bipedalism is the most easily identifiable human trait. No other living mammal walks habitually upright like people do. In The Wisdom of the Bones, Walker and Shipman recount Raymond Dart’s studies of Australopithecines. They found that Australopithecines were more primitive like chimpanzees rather than having human-like intelligence.…
In discovering the capabilities of bonobos and chimpanzees making use of sophisticated pre-agricultural tools this potentially changes the way hominin evolution developed. Such usage of tools was once regarded as a particular characteristic of archaic pre-humans. Bonobos were observed performing complex action such as using tools to extract food, or using spears for attack or defense. Bonobos are similar to chimpanzees, but previously bonobos did not show a cultural diversity in use of tools as much as their chimpanzee siblings. In studies of chimpanzees for example, they have been able to use branches to dig for tubers or turn them into spears in order to hunt for small prosimians.…
Having dermal ridges on the hands and feet is another trait, allowing primates to have better gripping abilities when climbing. Primates have dietary plasticity and can be seen through their teeth. Another trait is the forward-facing eyes with gives primates’ better vision, including depth perception…
Fossils prove Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution. This due to the fact that evolution is a ‘gradual process in which a species changes into a different and more complex form’ as can be see each bone gradually changes into a more complex and different form. In the first bone (Hyracotherium) the bone has appendages on its foot, this was in the Paleocene–Eocene Thermal Maximum period. This period was really wet with mud etc. and the temperature was rising so the ground would have hardened up.…
Four million years ago, a few ape like animals that began to walk upright taking the first faltering steps towards becoming human beings. Time and changing, and the struggle for survival continued shaping us. Along the way, social groups became the key to survival, and the human family evolved as pleasure of mating. In their struggle for survival these creatures found saving advantages in a new way of walking.instead of scampering on all fours, as usual, they stood upright and gradually and no doubt unsteadily at first, began to walk on their hind limbs.…
Evolutionary Relationships of Hominin Species In the study of human evolution, the timeframe that a specific species appeared and lived is a very important aspect to better understand how modern-day humans developed. The oldest of the species in the chart above is Australopithecus afarensis. Australopithecus afarensis appeared roughly 3.85 - 2.95 million years ago; while it more closely resembled an ape, the evolutionary development into modern humans was beginning. Australopithecus afarensis had more humanlike teeth, the canines were smaller than those found in modern apes and the jaw shape was somewhere between the rectangular shape found in apes and the parabolic shape found in humans.…
The Evolution in Primate Locomotion and Body Configuration One of the most important parts of the primate evolution is when the primates changed in body structure and locomotion. Although some may say that the origin of the human bipedalism is a persistent mystery (Gebo 1996); however, the evolution of bipedalism began in order to survive through climate changes, be able to hunt their food and get away from danger in order to survive. Primate locomotion can be classified into four major types: vertical clinging and leaping, quadrupedalism, brachiating and bipedalism (Groves, 2014). Over the millions of years, primates have been adapting to the changing environment therefore improving the structure of their bodies and speed (“Evolution…
According to the textbook, there are many characteristic phases of development in the pre-historic humanity. One of the very beginnings of pre-history started from the Stone Age where human characteristic originated from Africa. During this age, hominids created most of their tools from stone, which is why they were known as the Stone Age (“Because these early hominids made most of their tools out of stone, they are destined as belonging to the stone age”) (4)). “As early as 164,000 years ago, using it to make tools” (4) the hominids were able to create and control fire. There was a growth of expanding during the Paleolithic Era, creating more expansion of people, land, and new technology.…
The Merriam-Webster dictionary explains evolution as a theory of changes that occur because constant change that excel naturally over a long period of time. (Merriam-Webster) This means that over a long period of time there were changes made from all the species and as time progressed we all started to break up into different categories and then different branches of those categories. It is said that we, as humans, share the same category as the primates. Though, over time we started to evolve into a category within ourselves, we share similar features to our brothering primates.…
Evolution shapes certain characteristics which can be shared by many species of a certain organism. These traits can be related to the four evolutionary trends of hominins: bipedalism, dental change, cranial capacity and material culture. (Gonzalez, pwpt) The three anatomical characteristics of skull one are the teeth and jaw are smaller, the projection of the face and jaw is less than previous hominins and the cranial capacity increases by elongating. The dental change suggests a change in diet from being herbivores to being omnivores because of environmental changes.…
Since the emergence of the genus Homo, the hominins went through great patterns of evolution over generations. Through series of adaptations, the genus Homo spread in various geographic locations and eventually emerged as anatomically modern humans. With the allele frequency changes that evolved in the genus Homo, there is key evidence that microevolution led to macroevolution. From speciation to extinction, the modern synthesis helps us explain not only the mechanisms of evolution and the reproductive barriers between species, but also the various social adaptations that changed the hominins over time. From 2mya to ca.…