Posted on 12/12/2018 9:52:39 AM PST by ETL
The analysis of the world's most complete skeleton of an early human ancestor, conducted by a research collaboration involving the University of Liverpool, offers conclusive evidence that human ancestors became efficient upright walkers while they were still substantially tree dwelling animals.
The first bones of the 3.67 million old skeleton, specimen StW 573 nicknamed 'Little Foot', were 12 foot bones and leg bone fragments identified in boxes in the 1990s. The rest of the skeleton has undergone two decades of painstaking excavation, cleaning, restoring and analysis. It was found in a very deep cavern, with the bone embedded in a concrete-like matrix. The bone is very delicate and in some cases literally paper-thin. However, it has given scientists a far greater understanding of how our species evolved.
Limbs intact
The over 90 percent complete skeleton of an old female, much more than twice as complete as the famous Lucy, and considerably older as well, Little Foot is a member of the genus Australopithecus, a widespread and varied genus of hominins to which Lucy belonged, and which was an early precursor to modern-day Homo sapiens which appeared roughly 300,000 years ago. Little Foot is the first fossil of Australopithecus ever to have been discovered with its limbs intact.
The studies support the argument of her discoverer, Professor Ronald Clarke of the University of the Witwatersrand, that there were two species of Australopithecus living at the same time in South Africa's 'Cradle of Humankind', Australopithecus africanus, which was small, like Lucy, and probably primarily tree-dwelling, and Australopithecus prometheus, which was probably just within the range of modern human stature.
Important finding
As part of the study, which has been reported in Nature Science, Professor Robin Crompton, Honorary University of Liverpool Research Associate in Musculoskeletal Biology, and his colleagues analysed how she would have walked.
Professor Crompton, states: "This hominin, for the first time in the fossil record, had longer lower limbs than upper limbs, like ourselves. This is an important finding, as the slightly older hominin Ardipithecus, which came before Australopithecus, had longer arms than legs – more like other great apes such as the gorilla.
"That means she was being selected for long stride length in bipedalism. Moreover, unlike Lucy, 'Littlefoot' had a hip joint like our own, able to transmit large forces from the trunk to the leg and vice versa. Although Little Foot's legs were longer than her arms, they had not yet achieved the great relative leg length found in humans. Thus, she would not have been as good at carrying objects as we are. However, she would have been much better at climbing trees than modern humans.
"It is most likely that she would have resided in an area that was a mix of tropical rainforest, broken woodland and grassland, through which she would roam around. She would have lived primarily on forest fruits and leaves"
The study involved collaborators from; Aintree University NHS Trust's Department of Rheumatology, University of Brighton's School of Health Sciences, University of Birmingham's School of Biosciences, University of Manchester's School of Earth and Environmental Science, Birmingham-Southern College's Department of Biology (Alabama, U.S.A.) and University of the Witwatersrand's Evolutionary Studies Institute (Johannesburg, South Africa).
The paper is titled "Functional Anatomy, Biomechanical Performance Capabilities and Potential Niche of StW 573: an Australopithecus Skeleton (circa 3.67 Ma) From Sterkfontein Member 2, and its significance for The Last Common Ancestor of the African Apes and for Hominin Origins."
Explore further: Cranium of a four-million-year-old hominin shows similarities to that of modern humans
More information: Robin Huw Crompton et al. Functional Anatomy, Biomechanical Performance Capabilities and Potential Niche of StW 573: an Australopithecus Skeleton (circa 3.67 Ma) From Sterkfontein Member 2, and its significance for The Last Common Ancestor of the African Apes and for Hominin Origins, Nature Science (2018). DOI: 10.1101/481556
Provided by: University of Liverpool
Little Foot’s fossil bones [Credit: Patrick Landmann/Science Photo Library]
Oh how this stuff changes quickly.
When I took anthropology in the 90’s, they were saying that early pre-humans split off from three dwellers and lived in the savanahs and stepps and needed to stand to see farther. Now they are saying standing started in trees, which evokes monkeys more than apes.
Also, back then (unless my memory fails me) Australopithecus was in another fork, and not an ancenstor to humans.
Publish or perish is why they keep coming out with such laughable garbage.
“She would have lived primarily on forest fruits and leaves.”
She was a cheap date.
“Waiter! Bring the lady a bowl of leaves.....French leaves if you have them.”
would you care for the house lice, or prefer to groom them off of her yourself?
“However, it has given scientists a far greater understanding of how our species evolved.”
Romans 1:21-23 New International Version (NIV)
21 For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.
22 Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools
23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles
“...found in a very deep cavern...”
I wasn’t aware that there were many trees in caverns....
I know I know I’m just being facetious
I've seen this a few times... I found it interesting and enjoyable:
A homo-sapiens/neanderthal love story (Ao! Last Neanderthal)
I recall, from the early 80s, being taught that Australpithicus was a direct ancestor.
All I know is that, going by the last time I climbed a tree, the habit of walking at all in the trees was lost a long time ago.
Not if you actually read the article.
It says this specimen is a transitional form that lived in a mixed forest and savanah environment.
We stayed in the trees, with their citrus goodies, too long. We lost from underuse the ability to make our own vitamin C.
Shoot, even my dog makes his own C, but not me.
If science were locked down and never-changing, it would be worthless. It wouldn’t be science, it would be religion.
Wouldn’t it have been somewhat easier to stand upright and learn to walk on sidewalks? Doing that in trees must have been a real challenge. Lucy had to be a Democrat.
You are sure these are not stills from the old movie THE FIRST MEN IN THE MOON? That “scientist” sure looks like Lionel Jeffries.
All I have to say about this nonsense is that learned or acquired traits are not inherited. Behavior does not alter or create Genes. The Genes for a human pelvis and foot had to be there already, before they could, over time, becomes more prevalent in the population.
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