New human species from South Africa—Australopithecus sediba—has been held up as the ancestor of our genus, Homo.
Image: Brent Stirton/Getty Images
In Brief
- The origin of our genus, Homo, is one of the biggest mysteries facing scholars of human evolution.
- Based on the meager evidence available, scientists have surmised that Homo arose in East Africa, with Lucy’s species, Australopithecus afarensis, giving rise to the founding member of our lineage, Homo habilis.
- Recently discovered fossils from a site northwest of Johannesburg, South Africa, could upend that scenario. The fossils represent a previously unknown species of human with an amalgam of australopithecine and Homo traits that suggest to its discoverers that it could be the ancestor of Homo.
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Sometime between three million and two million years ago, perhaps on a primeval savanna in Africa, our ancestors became recognizably human. For more than a million years their australopithecine predecessors—Lucy and her kind, who walked upright like us yet still possessed the stubby legs, tree-climbing hands and small brains of their ape forebears—had thrived in and around the continent’s forests and woodlands. But their world was changing. Shifting climate favored the spread of open grasslands, and the early australopithecines gave rise to new lineages. One of these offshoots evolved long legs, toolmaking hands and an enormous brain. This was our genus, Homo, the primate that would rule the planet.
For decades paleoanthropologists have combed remote corners of Africa on hand and knee for fossils of Homo’s earliest representatives, seeking to understand the details of how our genus rose to prominence. Their efforts have brought only modest gains—a jawbone here, a handful of teeth there. Most of the recovered fossils instead belong to either ancestral australopithecines or later members of Homo—creatures too advanced to illuminate the order in which our distinctive traits arose or the selective pressures that fostered their emergence. Specimens older than two million years with multiple skeletal elements preserved that could reveal how the Homo body plan came together eluded discovery. Scientists’ best guess is that the transition occurred in East Africa, where the oldest fossils attributed to Homo have turned up, and that Homo’s hallmark characteristics allowed it to incorporate more meat into its diet—a rich source of calories in an environment where fruits and nuts had become scarce. But with so little evidence to go on, the origin of our genus has remained as mysterious as ever.
This article was originally published with the title First of Our Kind.
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4 Comments
Add CommentExcellent article, excellent possibilities; however, something that the good Dr.(?) Berger should bear in mind is that, when he was born, Ramapithecus was touted as a direct lineal ancestor to the Homo line, due to physiology. But, stating A. sediba as a potential member of Homo is a good idea, unless the evidence overwhelmingly says otherwise. Either way, a great find, and a lucky one. Hope to hear more about these sites as time goes on.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisThus Spoke Zarathustra ran through my mind.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this9 year old boy, Mathew Berger, may be Best Archeologist on planet. The discoverer was Dr. Berger's son, not the good Dr.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisIf it can be verified via examination and analysis, this would be exciting!
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