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Zhang Y, Westaway KE, Haberle S, Lubeek JK, Bailey M, Ciochon R, Morley MW, Roberts P, Zhao JX, Duval M, Dosseto A, Pan Y, Rule S, Liao W, Gully GA, Lucas M, Mo J, Yang L, Cai Y, Wang W, Joannes-Boyau R. The demise of the giant ape Gigantopithecus blacki. Nature 2024; 625:535-539. [PMID: 38200315 PMCID: PMC10794149 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-023-06900-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2022] [Accepted: 11/27/2023] [Indexed: 01/12/2024]
Abstract
The largest ever primate and one of the largest of the southeast Asian megafauna, Gigantopithecus blacki1, persisted in China from about 2.0 million years until the late middle Pleistocene when it became extinct2-4. Its demise is enigmatic considering that it was one of the few Asian great apes to go extinct in the last 2.6 million years, whereas others, including orangutan, survived until the present5. The cause of the disappearance of G. blacki remains unresolved but could shed light on primate resilience and the fate of megafauna in this region6. Here we applied three multidisciplinary analyses-timing, past environments and behaviour-to 22 caves in southern China. We used 157 radiometric ages from six dating techniques to establish a timeline for the demise of G. blacki. We show that from 2.3 million years ago the environment was a mosaic of forests and grasses, providing ideal conditions for thriving G. blacki populations. However, just before and during the extinction window between 295,000 and 215,000 years ago there was enhanced environmental variability from increased seasonality, which caused changes in plant communities and an increase in open forest environments. Although its close relative Pongo weidenreichi managed to adapt its dietary preferences and behaviour to this variability, G. blacki showed signs of chronic stress and dwindling populations. Ultimately its struggle to adapt led to the extinction of the greatest primate to ever inhabit the Earth.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yingqi Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
- School of Natural Sciences, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Macquarie University, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
| | - Kira E Westaway
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
- School of Natural Sciences, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Macquarie University, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
| | - Simon Haberle
- School of Culture, History and Languages, ANU College of Asia and the Pacific, Australian National University, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia
| | - Juliën K Lubeek
- School of Natural Sciences, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Macquarie University, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Marian Bailey
- GARG, Southern Cross University, Lismore, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Russell Ciochon
- Department of Anthropology and Museum of Natural History, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Mike W Morley
- College of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences, Flinders University, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
| | - Patrick Roberts
- isoTROPIC Research Group, Max Planck Institute for Geoanthropology, Jena, Germany
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for Geoanthropology, Jena, Germany
- School of Social Sciences, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
| | - Jian-Xin Zhao
- School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
| | - Mathieu Duval
- National Research Centre on Human Evolution CENIEH, Burgos, Spain
- Australian Research Centre for Human Evolution (ARCHE), Griffith University, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
| | - Anthony Dosseto
- Wollongong Isotope Geochronology Laboratory, School of Earth, Atmospheric and Life Sciences, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Yue Pan
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Sue Rule
- School of Culture, History and Languages, ANU College of Asia and the Pacific, Australian National University, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia
| | - Wei Liao
- Institute of Cultural Heritage, Shandong University, Qingdao, China
| | - Grant A Gully
- College of Science and Engineering, Flinders University, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
| | - Mary Lucas
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for Geoanthropology, Jena, Germany
| | - Jinyou Mo
- Natural History Museum of Guangxi, Nanning, China
| | - Liyun Yang
- Chongzuo Zhuang Ethnological Musuem, Chongzuo, China
| | - Yanjun Cai
- Institute of Global Environmental Change, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, China
| | - Wei Wang
- Institute of Cultural Heritage, Shandong University, Qingdao, China.
| | - Renaud Joannes-Boyau
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
- GARG, Southern Cross University, Lismore, New South Wales, Australia.
- Palaeo-Research Institute, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa.
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Estimates of absolute crown strength and bite force in the lower postcanine dentition of Gigantopithecus blacki. J Hum Evol 2023; 175:103313. [PMID: 36709569 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2022.103313] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2021] [Revised: 12/18/2022] [Accepted: 12/18/2022] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
Abstract
Gigantopithecus blacki is hypothesized to have been capable of processing mechanically challenging foods, which likely required this species to have high dental resistance to fracture and/or large bite force. To test this hypothesis, we used two recently developed approaches to estimate absolute crown strength and bite force of the lower postcanine dentition. Sixteen Gigantopithecus mandibular permanent cheek teeth were scanned by micro-computed tomography. From virtual mesial cross-sections, we measured average enamel thickness and bi-cervical diameter to estimate absolute crown strength, and cuspal enamel thickness and dentine horn angle to estimate bite force. We compared G. blacki with a sample of extant great apes (Pan, Pongo, and Gorilla) and australopiths (Australopithecus anamensis, Australopithecus afarensis, Australopithecus africanus, Paranthropus robustus, and Paranthropus boisei). We also evaluated statistical differences in absolute crown strength and bite force between the premolars and molars for G. blacki. Results reveal that molar crown strength is absolutely greater, and molar bite force absolutely higher, in G. blacki than all other taxa except P. boisei, suggesting that G. blacki molars have exceptionally high resistance to fracture and the ability to generate exceptionally high bite force. In addition, G. blacki premolars have comparable absolute crown strength and larger bite force capabilities compared with its molars, implying possible functional specializations in premolars. The dental specialization of G. blacki could thus represent an adaptation to further facilitate the processing of mechanically challenging foods. While it is currently not possible to determine which types of foods were actually consumed by G. blacki through this study, direct evidence (e.g. dental chipping and microwear) left by the foods eaten by G. blacki could potentially lead to greater insights into its dietary ecology.
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Jiang Q, Zhao L, Guo L, Hu Y. First direct evidence of conservative foraging ecology of early Gigantopithecus blacki (~2 Ma) in Guangxi, southern China. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2021; 176:93-108. [PMID: 33964022 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.24300] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2020] [Revised: 03/09/2021] [Accepted: 04/09/2021] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Gigantopithecus blacki, the largest hominoid known, is one of the representative Pleistocene mammals in southern China and northern Southeast Asia. Here we investigate the feeding ecology of G. blacki in its core habitat (Guangxi, Southern China) during the early Early Pleistocene, which was the early period in its evolution. MATERIALS AND METHODS The stable isotopic (C, O) analysis of tooth enamel of the fauna associated with G. blacki (n = 58), including the largest number of G. blacki teeth (n = 12) to date from the Liucheng Gigantopithecus Cave (~2 Ma), Guangxi, China, is undertaken. RESULTS The δ13 C values of Liucheng fauna range from -12.9 to -19.0‰ with an average of -16.1 ± 1.3‰ (n = 58) and the δ18 O values range from -4.3 to -9.6‰ with an average of -6.9 ± 1.2‰ (n = 58). The δ13 C values of G. blacki range from -15.9‰ to -17.0‰ with an average of -16.5 ± 0.4‰ (n = 12), and the δ18 O values vary from -5.9‰ to -7.5‰ with an average of -6.6 ± 0.5‰ (n = 12). CONCLUSIONS The isotopic data show Guangxi was characterized by closed C3 forest and humid climate in the early Early Pleistocene. Niche partitioning is found among G. blacki, Sinomastodon, Ailuropoda and Stegodon, the typical megafauna in South China in the early Early Pleistocene. This could be one of the important factors for them to co-exist until the Middle Pleistocene. Smallest isotopic variations of G. blacki are found compared with those of contemporary animals, indicating a conservative foraging ecology i.e., limited foraging area and/or narrow dietary flexibility. Furthermore, the more confined foraging ecology of G. blacki is also seen in comparison with fossil and extant large-bodied primates. However, the unique dietary pattern of G. blacki does not seem to have hindered its survival. The environment in Guangxi during the early Early Pleistocene offered the suitable conditions for G. blacki to become one of the typical species in the faunal assemblages.
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Affiliation(s)
- Quyi Jiang
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.,Department of Archaeology and Anthropology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.,Zhejiang Provincial Office of Cultural Relics Authentication, Hangzhou, China
| | - Lingxia Zhao
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.,CAS Center for Excellence in Life and Paleoenvironment, Beijing, China
| | - Lin Guo
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.,CAS Center for Excellence in Life and Paleoenvironment, Beijing, China.,College of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Yaowu Hu
- Department of Cultural Heritage and Museology, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.,Institute of Archaeological Science, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
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ORTIZ ALEJANDRA, ZHANG YINGQI, JIN CHANGZHU, WANG YUAN, ZHU MIN, YAN YALING, KIMOCK CLARE, VILLAMIL CATALINAI, HE KAI, HARRISON TERRY. Morphometric analysis of fossil hylobatid molars from the Pleistocene of southern China. ANTHROPOL SCI 2019. [DOI: 10.1537/ase.190331] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/01/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- ALEJANDRA ORTIZ
- Institute of Human Origins, School of Human Evolution and Social Change, Arizona State University, Tempe
| | - YINGQI ZHANG
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology (IVPP), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing
- CAS Center for Excellence in Life and Paleoenvironment, Beijing
- State Key Laboratory of Palaeobiology and Stratigraphy, Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing
| | - CHANGZHU JIN
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology (IVPP), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing
- CAS Center for Excellence in Life and Paleoenvironment, Beijing
| | - YUAN WANG
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology (IVPP), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing
- CAS Center for Excellence in Life and Paleoenvironment, Beijing
| | - MIN ZHU
- School of History, Beijing Normal University, Beijing
| | - YALING YAN
- The Geoscience Museum, Hebei GEO University, Shijiazhuang
| | - CLARE KIMOCK
- Center for the Study of Human Origins, Department of Anthropology, New York University, New York
- New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology, New York
| | | | - KAI HE
- School of Basic Medical Sciences, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou
| | - TERRY HARRISON
- Center for the Study of Human Origins, Department of Anthropology, New York University, New York
- New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology, New York
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