The world of paleoanthropology is constantly changing as people make new discoveries at digging sites or in an office examining fossils. Things are constantly shifting in that world and changing modern day human’s understanding of the past and their evolution. When looking at fossils, they try to see how much variation is needed to name it a new species or not. There are different fossils that are currently being argued about, where it is questioned if the fossil should be classified as a different species or a new one. One of those fossils that is currently being debated on is the Homo Floresiensis, known as “The Hobbit” to paleoanthropologists. It is argued whether Homo Floresiensis is a species, or if is a ruminant of evolution. The arguments can be seen though the concepts of lumpers vs. splitters, interspecies and intraspecies variation, speciation and adaptive radiation, its skeletal morphology, and its genetics. More can be learned about Homo Floresiensis through lumpers versus splitters. Lumbers have a high degree of intraspecific variability and they have a reduced number of species but they have high variability within their species (Rowe, 2015) While splitters have a low degree of intrapecies variability and they tend to have a large species count but they have very low degrees of variability (Rowe 2015). The splitters researchers also say that speciation was s frequent occurrence during human evolution, and that they identify numerous hominin fossil species in studied samples (Lewis, Jurmaine, & Kilgore, 2013, p. 105). Lumpers believe that speciation was not that common and see the variation as being intraspecfific (Lewis et al., 2013, p. 106). The Homo Floresiensis is more like a splitter because at the moment it is its own species, and it has low variation because it is very similar to other fossils (“Hobbits on Flores, Indonesia,” 2015). The intraspecific and interspecific variation of a species is important as well. Interspecific variation is variation in two or more species to show all of the aspects of variation between the species and it shows the differences between groups who are reproductively isolated (Lewis et al., 2013, p. 105). Intraspecific variation is the variation that is seem within one species and its variation is about sex, age and individual differences within the species (Lewis et al., 2013, p. 105). The Homo Floresiensis fossil would have more of interspecific variation concerning its species. This is because its variation is being compared with other fossils and modern humans to show all of the aspects of the fossils variation. It has very low intraspecific variation because there are currently no other fossils of the same species to compare the variation within its species, not much is known about that. The variations help reveal more of the fossil and its species. Another aspect to consider is the speciation and the adaptive radiation of this species.
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Speciation is how new species are made which involves a form of isolation (Lewis et al., 2013, p. 103). It also is about the divergence of genetic information between two species that once were the same but they separated and were unable to reproduce with one another and over time as they evolved they become genetically different due to these conditions (Lewis et al., 2013, p. 103). An important for of isolation is geographical isolation when there is a geographical barrier (Lewis et al., 2013, p. 103). The Homo Floresiensis was geographically isolated as it was isolated on an island with other mammals with no interaction with other species like it (“Homo Floresiensis,” 2015). According to these listings of speciation the Homo Floresiensis would be categorized as its own species as it is at the moment, but there is still debate on its speciation due to its stature (“Homo Floresiensis,”2015). Adaptive radiation is a process when a species quickly takes advantage of new ecological niches that are available (Lewis et al., 2013, p. 113). As they adapt to those new niches they diversity into a large number of species (Lewis et al., 2013, p. 113). Its adaptive potential and the opportunities of the new niches leads to a species to diverge into many variations (Lewis et al., 2013, p. 113). The adaptive radiation of Homo Floresiensis was a well one as they created tools, and hunted other mammals like large rodents and small elephants on the island, taking advantage of the available niche to them (“Homo Floresiensis,” 2015). Both of these factors help shed more light on the species. Skeletal Morphology is another aspect of viewing the
Speciation is how new species are made which involves a form of isolation (Lewis et al., 2013, p. 103). It also is about the divergence of genetic information between two species that once were the same but they separated and were unable to reproduce with one another and over time as they evolved they become genetically different due to these conditions (Lewis et al., 2013, p. 103). An important for of isolation is geographical isolation when there is a geographical barrier (Lewis et al., 2013, p. 103). The Homo Floresiensis was geographically isolated as it was isolated on an island with other mammals with no interaction with other species like it (“Homo Floresiensis,” 2015). According to these listings of speciation the Homo Floresiensis would be categorized as its own species as it is at the moment, but there is still debate on its speciation due to its stature (“Homo Floresiensis,”2015). Adaptive radiation is a process when a species quickly takes advantage of new ecological niches that are available (Lewis et al., 2013, p. 113). As they adapt to those new niches they diversity into a large number of species (Lewis et al., 2013, p. 113). Its adaptive potential and the opportunities of the new niches leads to a species to diverge into many variations (Lewis et al., 2013, p. 113). The adaptive radiation of Homo Floresiensis was a well one as they created tools, and hunted other mammals like large rodents and small elephants on the island, taking advantage of the available niche to them (“Homo Floresiensis,” 2015). Both of these factors help shed more light on the species. Skeletal Morphology is another aspect of viewing the