Australopithecus

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Related to Australopithecus: Australopithecus africanus

Australopithecus

a genus of early Pleistocene primate that was hominid in some features but ape-like in others, such as the skull. Southern African in origin, Australopithecus was upright in posture.

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It's likely that Australopithecus anamensis walked on the ground at times too, but Macho points out that "form follows function.

Humans switched from living in trees to on the ground 4.2mn yrs ago

Ardipithecus evolved into an initial Australopithecus species by 4.

Ancient ancestor climbed, walked: foot fossils unveil a species that lived near Lucy's kind

Using this method, he analysed a dozen Australopithecus skulls.

Big babies 'may have helped define the shape of modern human societies'

2-million-year-old fossil from East Africa suggests Australopithecus afarensis, best known from the partial skeleton "Lucy," had stiff foot arches like those of people today, a sign of a two-legged stride (SN: 3/12/11, p.

Humans

Dirks said Australopithecus sediba is one of the most important discoveries in the human family tree as it contains features of both the Australopithecine and Homo species.

Oz fossil discovery offers clues on human evolution

Others regard the Malapa fossils either as an early Homo species or as late-surviving members of Australopithecus africanus, a dead-end hominid species that lived from about 3 million to 2.

Fossil finds give new details on ancient relative: species proposed to have given rise to first humans

sediba shares more features with early Homo specimens than any other known Australopithecus species does, said Darryl de Ruiter of Texas A&M University in College Station.

Debate anew on long-dead bones: ancient species may have initiated rise of Homo genus

Controversially, the researchers have named the fossils as a new species, Australopithecus sediba.

Is 2-million-year-old African fossil the missing link in human evolution?

Based on previous analyses of the skeletons of Australopithecus afarensis, we expected that the Laetoli footprints would resemble those of someone walking with a bent knee, bent hip gait typical of chimpanzees, and not the striding gait normally used by modern humans," Raichlen said.

Our tree-dwelling ancestors could also walk on two legs 3.6 mln yrs ago

8 million-year-old vertebrae of Australopithecus africanus recovered in South Africa has revealed signs of a bacterial infection, which means it is the world's earliest human infection.

Ancient bones show evidence of world's earliest 'human' infection

The University of the Witwatersrand displayed the virtually complete Australopithecus fossil on Wednesday.

Rare 3.6 million-year-old skeleton unveiled

Using CT scan technology, they say Lucy, who was of the Australopithecus afarensis species, likely plunged to her death from a height of 40 feet, suffering fractures from her ankles to her jaw.