Human Evolution - page 1

 What is meant by human evolution?

The term 'human evolution' refers to the processes and changes that led to the appearance of modern humans on Earth. Although it may begin with the last common ancestor of all life, it is usually only concerned with the evolutionary history of primates, in particular, the genus Homo, and the emergence of Homo sapiens as a distinct species of Hominids.


How did humans evolve?

According to genetic studies, although the first life forms were in the form of bacteria, the record of human evolution extends back more than 6 million years and takes us to the point when human lineage split from that of chimpanzees, our closet living relatives. Although Homo sapiens are the only surviving human species, scientists have evidence of more than 20 species of ancient human relatives. During the process of evolution, humans are involved from the animal order, 'primates' - mammals which include lemurs, monkeys, apes, and tarsiers.


When did primate evolution begin?

According to the studies on biological evolutions, primate evolution likely began in the Late Cretaceous period (99.6-65.5 million years ago) The divergence of primates from other mammals began 85 million years ago and the earliest fossils appear in the Paleocene, around 55 million years ago in North America, Asia, and Europe.

Who were our earliest ancestors?

Our earliest ancestors were called Australopithecus afarensis, a genus of Hominids. They were ape-like creatures that walked upright on two legs. They were probably three to five feet tall, and dentally similar to humans, but with a brain size not much larger than a modern ape. The Australopithecus separated from the other Hominids around four million years ago. Archaeologists and paleontologists believe that it was one of the Australopith species that eventually evolved into the Homo genus around 2.3 million years ago, which gradually evolved into the modern human species.

 

Who were Hominids?

The Hominids, also known as the Great Apes, were a taxonomic family of primates; they included four extant genera: chimpanzees (Pan), gorillas (Gorilla), humans (Homo), and orangutans (Pongo). About 15 to 20 million years ago, the Great Apes diverged from the Hylobatidae family – gibbons.


 

How many members did the genus homo have in total?

The members of the genus Homo included Homo habilis, Homo rudolfensis, Homo ergaster, Homo erectus, and Homo sapiens. Due to the paucity of fossils, there is not yet a consensus as to which of these groups should count as separate species and which as subspecies.       

  


 

Which was the earliest species of the genus Homo?

The earliest documented species of the genus Homo was the ‘Homo habilis’ (Handy Man) which lived from approximately 2.33 to 1.4 million years ago, in Africa, during the Gelasian Pleistocene period. Homo 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. Homo habilis was one of the first hominid species to have a more flattened face like that of modern humans and had a cranial capacity slightly less than half of the size  of modern humans.

Who were Homo rudolfensis?

Homo rudolfensis (Rudolf Man) lived from 2.4 to 1.9 million years ago, in Eastern Africa (Northern Kenya, possibly Northern Tanzania and Malawi). They were taller than the Homo habilis. Their faces were larger and flat, with flared cheekbones and big molar teeth. Their brain size was 56% the size of a modern human brain. The fossil specimen, a toothless skull, was discovered in 1972 at koobi Gora on the East side of Lake Rudolf (now Lake Turkana) in Kenya. However, some paleontologists doubt the validity of rudolfensis as a separate species and instead believe that they were a member of the species, Homo habilis.

 

 

When did Homo erectus live?

Homo erectus (Upright Man) lived from about 1.8 million years ago to 50-70,000 years ago in Northern, Eastern, and Southern Africa;

Western\ Eastern Asia. However, often the early phase, from 1.8 to 1.25 million years ago is considered to be a separate species, Homo ergaster (Working Man), or as a subspecies of Homo erectus, Homo erectus ergaster. Some paleoanthropologists consider Homo ergaster to be simply an African variety of Homo erectus.

How were Homo erectus superior to Homo habilis?

The cranial capacity of Homo erectus was double that of the Homo habilis. Apart from having bigger brains, the Homo erectus was superior to Homo habilis in many other ways – bigger claws, sharper teeth, thicker skin and longer lower limbs for running and walking efficiency – which made them better hunters.

 

 

 

 


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