![]() If the remains are from a direct human ancestor, then the status of the australopithecine group as human ancestors is questioned. tchadensis has numerous derived hominin features and is therefore the oldest known human ancestor after the split of the human line from that of the chimpanzees. Does it belong on our family tree or is it an ancestor of a gorilla or chimpanzee? If it does belong on our family tree, was it a direct ancestor or a distant hominin 'cousin'? DistributionĪll fossils have been recovered from Toros-Menalla in the Djurab desert of Chad, Africa. Combined, the name means 'the Sahel man from Chad'. The species name is based on Chad, in recognition that all specimens were recovered from that country. ‘Sahel’ is the area of Africa near the southern Sahara where the fossils were found and ‘anthropus’ is based on the Greek word meaning ‘man’. As most of the diagnostic features are missing, the question of whether the femur represents a biped (or hominin) is extremely difficult. The femur was not recognised as possibly belonging to a hominid until 2004. Taphonomic analysis reveals that the various pieces may not have been deposited at the same time, perhaps they were even transported and reburied in modern times. However, they are not confirmed as belonging to the same species as the cranial remains. Two other possible hominin bones (a left femur and a mandible) were found alongside these remains, as were various mammal pieces. It was somewhat crushed and distorted when first discovered and some of its detail had been eroded by blowing sand. The cranium (TM 266-01-060-1) was made the type specimen. The finds included several jaw pieces, some teeth and a small but relatively complete cranium nicknamed Toumaï (‘hope of life’ in the local language). The team announced the new species in 2002. The discovery of six fossils (with identification numbers starting with TM 266) was made by a team, lead by Michel Brunet, between July 2001 and March 2002. This was possible because many of the fossil animals found at the site were identical to specimens that had been radiometrically dated elsewhere. The site lacked volcanic ash layers so was not suited to using radiometric dating techniques. This is a key date as it is about the time that scientists believe the human-line diverged from the ape-line. The hyoid bone beneath her neck looks ape-like, and her gorilla-like collarbone and long, curved fingers show significant tree-climbing.The remains are dated to 6-7 million years old. Her legs indicate she could walk upright, but other skeletal features showed she could also climb trees. Her partial skeleton is made up of a nearly complete skull and torso, and several limb bones. CT-scans of her skull show small canine teeth forming in the skull, telling us she was female. But her brain size indicates that a human growth rate was evolving. afarensis children shared a chimpanzee’s fast growth rate. Because Selam’s baby teeth erupted in a pattern similar to a three-year-old chimpanzee’s, researchers now know Au. Prior to Selam’s discovery, researchers knew very little about early human growth patterns as the early human fossil record consists of few children. She is nicknamed ‘Selam’ after the Amharic (Ethiopia’s official language) word for ‘peace,’ and is the most complete early human child known up until Neanderthal times. The fossilized remains of this 3 year-old early human child are often referred to as belonging to ‘Lucy’s baby' since she was found only a few miles south from where a skeleton of the same species nicknamed Lucy was found over two decades earlier, even though the child's fossil is actually 100,000 years older than famous Lucy. Science, Religion, Evolution and Creationism: Primer. ![]() Members Thoughts on Science, Religion & Human Origins (video).Teaching Evolution through Human Examples.Digital Archive of Ungulate and Carnivore Dentition.Adventures in the Rift Valley: Interactive.Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History The Smithsonian Institution's Human Origins Program Main Menu
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