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Russo GA, Prang TC, McGechie FR, Kuo S, Ward CV, Feibel C, Nengo IO. An ape partial postcranial skeleton (KNM-NP 64631) from the Middle Miocene of Napudet, northern Kenya. J Hum Evol 2024; 192:103519. [PMID: 38843697 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2024.103519] [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: 10/06/2023] [Revised: 02/29/2024] [Accepted: 03/01/2024] [Indexed: 06/23/2024]
Abstract
An ape partial postcranial skeleton (KNM-NP 64631) was recovered during the 2015-2021 field seasons at Napudet, a Middle Miocene (∼13 Ma) locality in northern Kenya. Bony elements representing the shoulder, elbow, hip, and ankle joints, thoracic and lumbar vertebral column, and hands and feet, offer valuable new information about the body plan and positional behaviors of Middle Miocene apes. Body mass estimates from femoral head dimensions suggest that the KNM-NP 64631 individual was smaller-bodied (c. 13-17 kg) than some Miocene taxa from eastern Africa, including Ekembo nyanzae, and probably Equatorius africanus or Kenyapithecus wickeri, and was more comparable to smaller-bodied male Nacholapithecus kerioi individuals. Similar to many Miocene apes, the KNM-NP 64631 individual had hip and hallucal tarsometatarsal joints reflecting habitual hindlimb loading in a variety of postures, a distal tibia with a large medial malleolus, an inflated humeral capitulum, probably a long lumbar spine, and a long pollical proximal phalanx relative to femoral head dimensions. The KNM-NP 64631 individual departs from most Early Miocene apes in its possession of a more steeply beveled radial head and deeper humeral zona conoidea, reflecting enhanced supinating-pronating abilities at the humeroradial joint. The KNM-NP 64631 individual also differs from Early Miocene Ekembo heseloni in having a larger elbow joint (inferred from radial head size) relative to the mediolateral width of the lumbar vertebral bodies and a more asymmetrical talar trochlea, and in these ways recalls inferred joint proportions for, and talocrural morphology of, N. kerioi. Compared to most Early Miocene apes, the KNM-NP 64631 individual likely relied on more forelimb-dominated arboreal behaviors, perhaps including vertical climbing (e.g., extended elbow, hoisting). Moreover, the Napudet ape partial postcranial skeleton suggests that an arboreally adapted body plan characterized by relatively large (here, based on joint size) forelimbs, but lacking orthograde suspensory adaptations, may not have been 'unusual' among Middle Miocene apes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gabrielle A Russo
- Department of Anthropology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA.
| | - Thomas C Prang
- Department of Anthropology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63130, USA
| | - Faye R McGechie
- Department of Basic Medical Sciences, University of Arizona College of Medicine - Phoenix 475 N 5th St, Phoenix, AZ 85004, USA
| | - Sharon Kuo
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Minnesota, Duluth, Duluth, MN 55802, USA; Technological Primates Research Group, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Carol V Ward
- Department of Pathology and Anatomical Sciences, M263 Medical Sciences Building, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65212, USA; Department of Anthropology, 107 Swallow Hall, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211, USA
| | - Craig Feibel
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Rutgers University, Busch Campus, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA; Department of Anthropology, Rutgers University, Douglass Campus, New Brunswick, NJ 08901, USA
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Cazenave M, Pina M, Hammond AS, Böhme M, Begun DR, Spassov N, Gazabón AV, Zanolli C, Bergeret-Medina A, Marchi D, Macchiarelli R, Wood B. Postcranial evidence does not support habitual bipedalism in Sahelanthropus tchadensis: A reply to Daver et al. (2022). J Hum Evol 2024:103557. [PMID: 38918139 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2024.103557] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2023] [Revised: 06/02/2024] [Accepted: 06/03/2024] [Indexed: 06/27/2024]
Affiliation(s)
- Marine Cazenave
- Department of Human Origins, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, 04103, Germany; Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), New York, NY 10024, USA; Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pretoria, 0084 Pretoria, South Africa.
| | - Marta Pina
- South Bank Applied BioEngineering Research (SABER), School of Engineering, Division of Mechanical Engineering and Design, London South Bank University, SE1 0AA London, UK; Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, Barcelona, Cerdanyola del Vallès, 08193, Spain
| | - Ashley S Hammond
- Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), New York, NY 10024, USA; New York Consortium of Evolutionary Primatology (NYCEP) at AMNH, New York, NY 10024, USA
| | - Madelaine Böhme
- Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen, Department of Geoscience, Sigwartstr. 10, 72076 Tübingen, Germany; Senckenberg Centre for Human Evolution and Paleoenvironment, Sigwartstr. 10, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
| | - David R Begun
- Department of Anthropology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 2S2, Canada
| | - Nikolai Spassov
- Department of Paleontology and Mineralogy, National Museum of Natural History, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, BG-1000, Sofia, Bulgaria
| | - Alessandra Vecino Gazabón
- Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), New York, NY 10024, USA; New York Consortium of Evolutionary Primatology (NYCEP) at AMNH, New York, NY 10024, USA; Richard Gilder Graduate School (RGGS) at the American Museum of Natural History, New York, USA
| | - Clément Zanolli
- Univ. Bordeaux, CNRS, MCC, PACEA, UMR 5199, F-33600 Pessac, France; Evolutionary Studies Institute, University of the Witwatersrand, 1 Jan Smuts Avenue, Braamfontein 2000, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | | | - Damiano Marchi
- Department of Biology, University of Pisa, 56126 Pisa, Italy; Evolutionary Studies Institute, University of the Witwatersrand, 1 Jan Smuts Avenue, Braamfontein 2000, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | | | - Bernard Wood
- Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology and Department of Anthropology, George Washington University, Washington, DC, 20052, USA
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Böhme M, Begun DR, Holmes AC, Lechner T, Ferreira G. Buronius manfredschmidi-A new small hominid from the early late Miocene of Hammerschmiede (Bavaria, Germany). PLoS One 2024; 19:e0301002. [PMID: 38848328 PMCID: PMC11161025 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0301002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2023] [Accepted: 03/09/2024] [Indexed: 06/09/2024] Open
Abstract
The known diversity of European middle and late Miocene hominids has increased significantly during the last decades. Most of these great apes were frugivores in the broadest sense, ranging from soft fruit frugivores most like chimpanzees to hard/tough object feeders like orangutans, varying in size from larger than siamangs (over 17 kg) to larger than most chimpanzees (~60-70 kg). In contrast to the frequent sympatry of hominoids in the early-to-middle Miocene of Africa, in no European Miocene locality more than one hominid taxon has been identified. Here we describe the first case of hominid sympatry in Europe from the 11.62 Ma old Hammerschmiede HAM 5 level, best known from its excellent record of Danuvius guggenmosi. The new fossils are consistent in size with larger pliopithecoids but differ morphologically from any pliopithecoid and from Danuvius. They are also distinguished from early and middle Miocene apes, share affinities with late Miocene apes, and represent a small hitherto unknown late Miocene ape Buronius manfredschmidi. With an estimated body mass of about 10 kg it represents the smallest known hominid taxon. The relative enamel thickness of Buronius is thin and contrasts with Danuvius, whose enamel is twice as thick. The differences between Buronius and Danuvius in tooth and patellar morphology, enamel thickness and body mass are indicative of differing adaptations in each, permitting resource partitioning, in which Buronius was a more folivorous climber.
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Affiliation(s)
- M. Böhme
- Department of Geosciences, Section Terrestrial Palaeoclimatology, Eberhard-Karls-Universität Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
- Section Palaeontology, Senckenberg Centre for Human Evolution and Palaeoenvironment, Tübingen, Germany
| | - D. R. Begun
- Department of Anthropology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - A. C. Holmes
- Department of Anthropology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - T. Lechner
- Department of Geosciences, Section Terrestrial Palaeoclimatology, Eberhard-Karls-Universität Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
- Section Palaeontology, Senckenberg Centre for Human Evolution and Palaeoenvironment, Tübingen, Germany
| | - G. Ferreira
- Department of Geosciences, Section Terrestrial Palaeoclimatology, Eberhard-Karls-Universität Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
- Section Palaeontology, Senckenberg Centre for Human Evolution and Palaeoenvironment, Tübingen, Germany
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Taubert M, Ziegler G, Lehmann N. Higher surface folding of the human premotor cortex is associated with better long-term learning capability. Commun Biol 2024; 7:635. [PMID: 38796622 PMCID: PMC11127997 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-024-06309-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2023] [Accepted: 05/08/2024] [Indexed: 05/28/2024] Open
Abstract
The capacity to learn enabled the human species to adapt to various challenging environmental conditions and pass important achievements on to the next generation. A growing body of research suggests links between neocortical folding properties and numerous aspects of human behavior, but their impact on enhanced human learning capacity remains unexplored. Here we leverage three training cohorts to demonstrate that higher levels of premotor cortical folding reliably predict individual long-term learning gains in a challenging new motor task, above and beyond initial performance differences. Individual folding-related predisposition to motor learning was found to be independent of cortical thickness and intracortical microstructure, but dependent on larger cortical surface area in premotor regions. We further show that learning-relevant features of cortical folding occurred in close spatial proximity to practice-induced structural brain plasticity. Our results suggest a link between neocortical surface folding and human behavioral adaptability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marco Taubert
- Department of Sport Science, Institute III, Faculty of Humanities, Otto von Guericke University, Zschokkestraße 32, 39104, Magdeburg, Germany.
- Center for Behavioral and Brain Science (CBBS), Otto von Guericke University, Universitätsplatz 2, 39106, Magdeburg, Germany.
- Collaborative Research Center 1436 Neural Resources of Cognition, Otto von Guericke University, Leipziger Str. 44, 39120, Magdeburg, Germany.
| | - Gabriel Ziegler
- Collaborative Research Center 1436 Neural Resources of Cognition, Otto von Guericke University, Leipziger Str. 44, 39120, Magdeburg, Germany
- Germany German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Leipziger Straße 44, 39120, Magdeburg, Germany
- Institute of Cognitive Neurology and Dementia Research, Otto von Guericke University, Leipziger Str. 44, 39120, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Nico Lehmann
- Department of Sport Science, Institute III, Faculty of Humanities, Otto von Guericke University, Zschokkestraße 32, 39104, Magdeburg, Germany
- Collaborative Research Center 1436 Neural Resources of Cognition, Otto von Guericke University, Leipziger Str. 44, 39120, Magdeburg, Germany
- Department of Neurology, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Stephanstraße 1a, 04103, Leipzig, Germany
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Druelle F, Leti I, Bokika Ngawolo JC, Narat V. Vertical climbing in free-ranging bonobos: An exploratory study integrating locomotor performance and substrate compliance. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2024; 183:e24894. [PMID: 38180148 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.24894] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/07/2023] [Accepted: 12/13/2023] [Indexed: 01/06/2024]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Ecological factors and body size shape animal movement and adaptation. Large primates such as bonobos excel in navigating the demanding substrates of arboreal habitats. However, current approaches lack comprehensive assessment of climbing performance in free-ranging individuals, limiting our understanding of locomotor adaptations. This study aims to explore climbing performance in free-ranging bonobos and how substrate properties affect their behavior. METHODS We collected data on the climbing performance of habituated bonobos, Pan paniscus, in the Bolobo Territory, Democratic Republic of Congo. We analyzed 46 climbing bouts (12 ascents, 34 descents) while moving on vertical substrates of varying diameter and compliance levels. This study assessed the average speed, peak acceleration, resting postures, and transitions between climbing and other locomotor modes. RESULTS During climbing sequences and transitions, bonobos mitigate speed variations. They also exhibit regular pauses during climbing and show higher speeds during descent in contrast to their ascent. Regarding the influence of substrate properties, bonobos exhibit higher speed when ascending on thin and slightly flexible substrates, while they appear to achieve higher speeds when descending on large and stiff substrates, by using a "fire-pole slide" submode. DISCUSSION Bonobos demonstrate remarkable abilities for negotiating vertical substrates and substrate properties influence their performance. Our results support the idea that bonobos adopt a behavioral strategy that aligns with the notion of minimizing costs. Overall, the adoption of high velocities and the use of low-cost resting postures may reduce muscle fatigue. These aspects could represent important targets of selection to ensure ecological efficiency in bonobos.
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Affiliation(s)
- François Druelle
- Histoire Naturelle de l'Homme Préhistorique, UMR 7194, CNRS-MNHN-UPVD, Paris, France
- Functional Morphology Laboratory, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Innocent Leti
- NGO Mbou-Mon-Tour, Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo
| | | | - Victor Narat
- Eco-Anthropologie, UMR 7206, MNHN-CNRS-Univ. Paris Cité, Paris, France
- Bonobo Eco, Saint Brice sur Vienne, Vienne, France
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Druelle F, Ghislieri M, Molina-Vila P, Rimbaud B, Agostini V, Berillon G. A comparative study of muscle activity and synergies during walking in baboons and humans. J Hum Evol 2024; 189:103513. [PMID: 38401300 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2024.103513] [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: 01/22/2023] [Revised: 02/15/2024] [Accepted: 02/16/2024] [Indexed: 02/26/2024]
Abstract
Bipedal locomotion was a major functional change during hominin evolution, yet, our understanding of this gradual and complex process remains strongly debated. Based on fossil discoveries, it is possible to address functional hypotheses related to bipedal anatomy, however, motor control remains intangible with this approach. Using comparative models which occasionally walk bipedally has proved to be relevant to shed light on the evolutionary transition toward habitual bipedalism. Here, we explored the organization of the neuromuscular control using surface electromyography (sEMG) for six extrinsic muscles in two baboon individuals when they walk quadrupedally and bipedally on the ground. We compared their muscular coordination to five human subjects walking bipedally. We extracted muscle synergies from the sEMG envelopes using the non-negative matrix factorization algorithm which allows decomposing the sEMG data in the linear combination of two non-negative matrixes (muscle weight vectors and activation coefficients). We calculated different parameters to estimate the complexity of the sEMG signals, the duration of the activation of the synergies, and the generalizability of the muscle synergy model across species and walking conditions. We found that the motor control strategy is less complex in baboons when they walk bipedally, with an increased muscular activity and muscle coactivation. When comparing the baboon bipedal and quadrupedal pattern of walking to human bipedalism, we observed that the baboon bipedal pattern of walking is closer to human bipedalism for both baboons, although substantial differences remain. Overall, our findings show that the muscle activity of a non-adapted biped effectively fulfills the basic mechanical requirements (propulsion and balance) for walking bipedally, but substantial refinements are possible to optimize the efficiency of bipedal locomotion. In the evolutionary context of an expanding reliance on bipedal behaviors, even minor morphological alterations, reducing muscle coactivation, could have faced strong selection pressure, ultimately driving bipedal evolution in hominins.
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Affiliation(s)
- François Druelle
- Histoire Naturelle de l'Homme Préhistorique, UMR 7194, CNRS-MNHN-UPVD, Musée de l'Homme, 17 place du Trocadéro, 75116 Paris, France; Primatology Station of the CNRS, UAR 846, 2230 route des quatre tours, 13790 Rousset, France; Functional Morphology Laboratory, University of Antwerp, Campus Drie Eiken (Building D), Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Antwerp, Belgium.
| | - Marco Ghislieri
- Department of Electronics and Telecommunications, Politecnico di Torino, Corso Duca degli Abruzzi, 24, 10129 Turin, Italy; PoliTo(BIO)Med Lab, Politecnico di Torino, Corso Duca degli Abruzzi, 24, 10129 Turin, Italy
| | - Pablo Molina-Vila
- Primatology Station of the CNRS, UAR 846, 2230 route des quatre tours, 13790 Rousset, France
| | - Brigitte Rimbaud
- Primatology Station of the CNRS, UAR 846, 2230 route des quatre tours, 13790 Rousset, France
| | - Valentina Agostini
- Department of Electronics and Telecommunications, Politecnico di Torino, Corso Duca degli Abruzzi, 24, 10129 Turin, Italy; PoliTo(BIO)Med Lab, Politecnico di Torino, Corso Duca degli Abruzzi, 24, 10129 Turin, Italy
| | - Gilles Berillon
- Histoire Naturelle de l'Homme Préhistorique, UMR 7194, CNRS-MNHN-UPVD, Musée de l'Homme, 17 place du Trocadéro, 75116 Paris, France; Primatology Station of the CNRS, UAR 846, 2230 route des quatre tours, 13790 Rousset, France
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Zhang Y, Ni X, Li Q, Stidham T, Lu D, Gao F, Zhang C, Harrison T. Lufengpithecus inner ear provides evidence of a common locomotor repertoire ancestral to human bipedalism. Innovation (N Y) 2024; 5:100580. [PMID: 38476202 PMCID: PMC10928440 DOI: 10.1016/j.xinn.2024.100580] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2023] [Accepted: 01/13/2024] [Indexed: 03/14/2024] Open
Abstract
Various lines of evidence have been used to infer the origin of human bipedalism, but the paucity of hominoid postcranial fossils and the diversity of inferred locomotor modes have tended to confound the reconstruction of ancestral morphotypes. Examination of the bony labyrinth morphology of the inner ear of extinct and living hominoids provides independent evidence for inferring the evolution of hominoid locomotor patterns. New computed tomography data and morphometric analyses of the Late Miocene ape Lufengpithecus indicate that it and other stem great apes possess labyrinths similar to one another and show that hominoids initially evolved from a positional repertoire that included orthogrady, below-branch forelimb suspension and progression, above-branch bipedalism, climbing, clambering, and leaping (hylobatid-like) to one that comprised above-branch quadrupedalism, below-branch forelimb suspension, vertical climbing, limited leaping, terrestrial quadrupedal running and walking, possibly with knuckle walking, and short bouts of bipedalism (chimpanzee-like). The bony labyrinth morphology of Lufengpithecus indicates that it probably conforms more closely to the last common ancestors of crown hominoids and hominids in its locomotor behavior than do other Miocene hominoids. Human bipedalism evolved from this common archetypal Lufengpithecus-like locomotor repertoire. The low evolutionary rate of semicircular canal morphology suggests that Lufengpithecus experienced a relative stasis in locomotor behavior, probably due to the uplift of the Tibetan Plateau, which created a stable environment in the Miocene of southwestern China.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yinan Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100044, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Xijun Ni
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100044, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Qiang Li
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100044, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Thomas Stidham
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100044, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Dan Lu
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100044, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Feng Gao
- Yunnan Institute of Cultural Relics and Archeology, Kunming 650118, China
| | - Chi Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100044, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Terry Harrison
- Center for the Study of Human Origins, Department of Anthropology, New York University, New York, NY 10003, USA
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Pugh KD, Catalano SA, Pérez de los Ríos M, Fortuny J, Shearer BM, Vecino Gazabón A, Hammond AS, Moyà-Solà S, Alba DM, Almécija S. The reconstructed cranium of Pierolapithecus and the evolution of the great ape face. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2023; 120:e2218778120. [PMID: 37844214 PMCID: PMC10622906 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2218778120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2022] [Accepted: 08/29/2023] [Indexed: 10/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Pierolapithecus catalaunicus (~12 million years ago, northeastern Spain) is key to understanding the mosaic nature of hominid (great ape and human) evolution. Notably, its skeleton indicates that an orthograde (upright) body plan preceded suspensory adaptations in hominid evolution. However, there is ongoing debate about this species, partly because the sole known cranium, preserving a nearly complete face, suffers from taphonomic damage. We 1) carried out a micro computerized tomography (CT) based virtual reconstruction of the Pierolapithecus cranium, 2) assessed its morphological affinities using a series of two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) morphometric analyses, and 3) modeled the evolution of key aspects of ape face form. The reconstruction clarifies many aspects of the facial morphology of Pierolapithecus. Our results indicate that it is most similar to great apes (fossil and extant) in overall face shape and size and is morphologically distinct from other Middle Miocene apes. Crown great apes can be distinguished from other taxa in several facial metrics (e.g., low midfacial prognathism, relatively tall faces) and only some of these features are found in Pierolapithecus, which is most consistent with a stem (basal) hominid position. The inferred morphology at all ancestral nodes within the hominoid (ape and human) tree is closer to great apes than to hylobatids (gibbons and siamangs), which are convergent with other smaller anthropoids. Our analyses support a hominid ancestor that was distinct from all extant and fossil hominids in overall facial shape and shared many features with Pierolapithecus. This reconstructed ancestral morphotype represents a testable hypothesis that can be reevaluated as new fossils are discovered.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kelsey D. Pugh
- Department of Anthropology, Brooklyn College, City University of New York, Brooklyn, NY11210
- Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY10024
- New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology, New York, NY10024
| | - Santiago A. Catalano
- Unidad Ejecutora Lillo, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas—Fundación Miguel Lillo, San Miguel de Tucumán4000, Argentina
- Facultad de Ciencias Naturales e Instituto Miguel Lillo, Universidad Nacional de Tucumán, San Miguel de Tucumán4000, Argentina
| | - Miriam Pérez de los Ríos
- Unidad de Antropología física, Departamento de Biodiversidad, Ecología y Evolución, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid28040, Spain
| | - Josep Fortuny
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona08193, Spain
| | - Brian M. Shearer
- New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology, New York, NY10024
- Department of Cell Biology, New York University Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY10016
- Department of Foundations of Medicine, New York University Long Island Grossman School of Medicine, Mineola, NY11501
| | - Alessandra Vecino Gazabón
- Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY10024
- New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology, New York, NY10024
- Richard Gilder Graduate School, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY10024
| | - Ashley S. Hammond
- Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY10024
- New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology, New York, NY10024
| | - Salvador Moyà-Solà
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona08193, Spain
- Institució Catalana de Recerca i Estudis Avançats, Barcelona08010, Spain
- Unitat d’Antropologia Biològica, Departament de Biologia Animal, Biologia Vegetal i Ecologia, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona08193, Spain
| | - David M. Alba
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona08193, Spain
| | - Sergio Almécija
- Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY10024
- New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology, New York, NY10024
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona08193, Spain
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Bode A. Romantic love evolved by co-opting mother-infant bonding. Front Psychol 2023; 14:1176067. [PMID: 37915523 PMCID: PMC10616966 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1176067] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2023] [Accepted: 09/18/2023] [Indexed: 11/03/2023] Open
Abstract
For 25 years, the predominant evolutionary theory of romantic love has been Fisher's theory of independent emotion systems. That theory suggests that sex drive, romantic attraction (romantic love), and attachment are associated with distinct neurobiological and endocrinological systems which evolved independently of each other. Psychological and neurobiological evidence, however, suggest that a competing theory requires attention. A theory of co-opting mother-infant bonding sometime in the recent evolutionary history of humans may partially account for the evolution of romantic love. I present a case for this theory and a new approach to the science of romantic love drawing on human psychological, neurobiological, and (neuro)endocrinological studies as well as animal studies. The hope is that this theoretical review, along with other publications, will generate debate in the literature about the merits of the theory of co-opting mother-infant bonding and a new evolutionary approach to the science of romantic love.
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Kikuchi Y. Body mass estimates from postcranial skeletons and implication for positional behavior in Nacholapithecus kerioi: Evolutionary scenarios of modern apes. Anat Rec (Hoboken) 2023; 306:2466-2483. [PMID: 36753432 DOI: 10.1002/ar.25173] [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: 09/01/2022] [Revised: 12/21/2022] [Accepted: 01/22/2023] [Indexed: 02/09/2023]
Abstract
This study reported the body mass (BM) estimates of the Middle Miocene fossil hominoid Nacholapithecus kerioi from Africa. The average BM estimates from all forelimb and hindlimb skeletal elements was 22.7 kg, which is slightly higher than the previously reported estimate of ~22 kg. This study revealed that Nacholapithecus has a unique body proportion with an enlarged forelimb relative to a smaller hindlimb, suggesting an antipronograde posture/locomotion, which may be related to the long clavicle, robust ribs, and some hominoid-like vertebral morphology. Because the BM of Nacholapithecus in this study was estimated to be below 30 kg, Nacholapithecus probably did not have relatively shorter and robust femora, which may result from other mechanical constraints, as seen in extant African hominoids. The BM estimate of Nacholapithecus suggests that full substantial modifications of the trunk and forelimb anatomy for risk avoidance and foraging efficiency, as seen in extant great apes, would not be expected in Nacholapithecus. Because larger monkeys are less arboreal (e.g., Mandrillus sphinx or Papio spp.), and the maximum BM among extant constant arboreal cercopithecoids is ~24 kg (male Nasalis larvatus), Nacholapithecus would be a constant arboreal primate. Although caution should be applied because of targeting only males in this study, arboreal quadrupedalism with upright posture and occasional antipronograde locomotion (e.g., climbing, chambering, descending, arm-swing, and sway) using the powerful grasping capacity of the hand and foot may be assumed for positional behavior of Nacholapithecus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yasuhiro Kikuchi
- Division of Human Anatomy and Biological Anthropology, Department of Anatomy and Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, Saga University, Saga, Japan
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11
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Vanhoof MJM, Croquet B, De Groote I, Vereecke EE. Principal component and linear discriminant analyses for the classification of hominoid primate specimens based on bone shape data. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2023; 10:230950. [PMID: 37736524 PMCID: PMC10509576 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.230950] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2023] [Accepted: 09/01/2023] [Indexed: 09/23/2023]
Abstract
In this study, we tested the hypothesis that machine learning methods can accurately classify extant primates based on triquetrum shape data. We then used this classification tool to observe the affinities between extant primates and fossil hominoids. We assessed the discrimination accuracy for an unsupervised and supervised learning pipeline, i.e. with principal component analysis (PCA) and linear discriminant analysis (LDA) feature extraction, when tasked with the classification of extant primates. The trained algorithm is used to classify a sample of known fossil hominoids. For the visualization, PCA and uniform manifold approximation and projection (UMAP) are used. The results show that the discriminant function correctly classified the extant specimens with an F1-score of 0.90 for both PCA and LDA. In addition, the classification of fossil hominoids reflects taxonomy and locomotor behaviour reported in literature. This classification based on shape data using PCA and LDA is a powerful tool that can discriminate between the triquetrum shape of extant primates with high accuracy and quantitatively compare fossil and extant morphology. It can be used to support taxonomic differentiation and aid the further interpretation of fossil remains. Further testing is necessary by including other bones and more species and specimens per species extinct primates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marie J. M. Vanhoof
- Department of Development & Regeneration, Biomedical Sciences Group, KU Leuven Campus Kulak, Kortrijk, Belgium
| | - Balder Croquet
- Medical Imaging Research Center, UZ Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
- Department of Electrical Engineering, ESAT/PSI, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Isabelle De Groote
- Department of Archaeology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
- Research Centre in Evolutionary Anthropology and Paleoecology, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool L3 3AF, UK
| | - Evie E. Vereecke
- Department of Development & Regeneration, Biomedical Sciences Group, KU Leuven Campus Kulak, Kortrijk, Belgium
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12
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Fannin LD, Joy MS, Dominy NJ, McGraw WS, DeSilva JM. Downclimbing and the evolution of ape forelimb morphologies. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2023; 10:230145. [PMID: 37680499 PMCID: PMC10480693 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.230145] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2023] [Accepted: 08/15/2023] [Indexed: 09/09/2023]
Abstract
The forelimbs of hominoid primates (apes) are decidedly more flexible than those of monkeys, especially at the shoulder, elbow and wrist joints. It is tempting to link the greater mobility of these joints to the functional demands of vertical climbing and below-branch suspension, but field-based kinematic studies have found few differences between chimpanzees and monkeys when comparing forelimb excursion angles during vertical ascent (upclimbing). There is, however, a strong theoretical argument for focusing instead on vertical descent (downclimbing), which motivated us to quantify the effects of climbing directionality on the forelimb kinematics of wild chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) and sooty mangabeys (Cercocebus atys). We found that the shoulders and elbows of chimpanzees and sooty mangabeys subtended larger joint angles during bouts of downclimbing, and that the magnitude of this difference was greatest among chimpanzees. Our results cast new light on the functional importance of downclimbing, while also burnishing functional hypotheses that emphasize the role of vertical climbing during the evolution of apes, including the human lineage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luke D. Fannin
- Department of Anthropology, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755, USA
- Ecology, Evolution, Environment and Society, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755, USA
| | - Mary S. Joy
- Department of Anthropology, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755, USA
| | - Nathaniel J. Dominy
- Department of Anthropology, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755, USA
- Department of Biological Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755, USA
| | - W. Scott McGraw
- Department of Anthropology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
| | - Jeremy M. DeSilva
- Department of Anthropology, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755, USA
- Ecology, Evolution, Environment and Society, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755, USA
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13
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Zanolli C, Bouchet F, Fortuny J, Bernardini F, Tuniz C, Alba DM. A reassessment of the distinctiveness of dryopithecine genera from the Iberian Miocene based on enamel-dentine junction geometric morphometric analyses. J Hum Evol 2023; 177:103326. [PMID: 36863301 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2023.103326] [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: 09/23/2022] [Revised: 01/21/2023] [Accepted: 01/21/2023] [Indexed: 03/04/2023]
Abstract
A vast diversity of catarrhines primates has been uncovered in the Middle to Late Miocene (12.5-9.6 Ma) of the Vallès-Penedès Basin (northeastern Spain), including several hominid species (Pierolapithecus catalaunicus, Anoiapithecus brevirostris, Dryopithecus fontani, Hispanopithecus laietanus, and Hispanopithecus crusafonti) plus some remains attributed to 'Sivapithecus' occidentalis (of uncertain taxonomic validity). However, Pierolapithecus and Anoiapithecus have also been considered junior synonyms of Dryopithecus by some authors, which entail a lower generic diversity and an inflated intrageneric variation of the latter genus. Since the distinction of these taxa partly relies on dental features, the detailed and quantitative analysis of tooth shape might help disentangling the taxonomic diversity of these Miocene hominids. Using diffeomorphic surface matching and three-dimensional geometric morphometrics, we investigate the enamel-dentine junction shape (which is a reliable taxonomic proxy) of these Miocene hominids, with the aim of investigating their degree of intra- and intergeneric variation compared with that of extant great ape genera. We conducted statistical analyses, including between-group principal component analyses, canonical variate analyses, and permutation tests, to investigate whether the individual and combined (i.e., Dryopithecus s.l.) variation of the extinct genera exceeds that of the extant great apes. Our results indicate that Pierolapithecus, Anoiapithecus, Dryopithecus, and Hispanopithecus show morphological differences of enamel-dentine junction shape relative to the extant great apes that are consistent with their attribution to different genera. Specifically, the variation displayed by the Middle Miocene taxa combined exceeds that of extant great ape genera, thus undermining the single-genus hypothesis. 'Sivapithecus' occidentalis specimens fall close to Dryopithecus but in the absence of well-preserved comparable teeth for Pierolapithecus and Anoiapithecus, their taxonomic attribution remains uncertain. Among the Hispanopithecus sample, IPS1802 from Can Llobateres stands out and might either be an outlier in terms of morphology, or represent another dryopithecine taxon.
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Affiliation(s)
- Clément Zanolli
- Univ. Bordeaux, CNRS, MCC, PACEA, UMR 5199, F-33600 Pessac, France.
| | - Florian Bouchet
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Josep Fortuny
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Federico Bernardini
- Department of Humanistic Studies, Università Ca'Foscari, Venezia, Italy; Multidisciplinary Laboratory, 'Abdus Salam' International Centre for Theoretical Physics, Via Beirut 31, 34151 Trieste, Italy
| | - Claudio Tuniz
- Multidisciplinary Laboratory, 'Abdus Salam' International Centre for Theoretical Physics, Via Beirut 31, 34151 Trieste, Italy
| | - David M Alba
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain.
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14
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Meyer MR, Jung JP, Spear JK, Araiza IF, Galway-Witham J, Williams SA. Knuckle-walking in Sahelanthropus? Locomotor inferences from the ulnae of fossil hominins and other hominoids. J Hum Evol 2023; 179:103355. [PMID: 37003245 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2023.103355] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2022] [Revised: 03/03/2023] [Accepted: 03/03/2023] [Indexed: 04/03/2023]
Abstract
Because the ulna supports and transmits forces during movement, its morphology can signal aspects of functional adaptation. To test whether, like extant apes, some hominins habitually recruit the forelimb in locomotion, we separate the ulna shaft and ulna proximal complex for independent shape analyses via elliptical Fourier methods to identify functional signals. We examine the relative influence of locomotion, taxonomy, and body mass on ulna contours in Homo sapiens (n = 22), five species of extant apes (n = 33), two Miocene apes (Hispanopithecus and Danuvius), and 17 fossil hominin specimens including Sahelanthropus, Ardipithecus, Australopithecus, Paranthropus, and early Homo. Ulna proximal complex contours correlate with body mass but not locomotor patterns, while ulna shafts significantly correlate with locomotion. African apes' ulna shafts are more robust and curved than Asian apes and are unlike other terrestrial mammals (including other primates), curving ventrally rather than dorsally. Because this distinctive curvature is absent in orangutans and hylobatids, it is likely a function of powerful flexors engaged in wrist and hand stabilization during knuckle-walking, and not an adaptation to climbing or suspensory behavior. The OH 36 (purported Paranthropus boisei) and TM 266 (assigned to Sahelanthropus tchadensis) fossils differ from other hominins by falling within the knuckle-walking morphospace, and thus appear to show forelimb morphology consistent with terrestrial locomotion. Discriminant function analysis classifies both OH 36 and TM 266 with Pan and Gorilla with high posterior probability. Along with its associated femur, the TM 266 ulna shaft contours and its deep, keeled trochlear notch comprise a suite of traits signaling African ape-like quadrupedalism. While implications for the phylogenetic position and hominin status of S. tchadensis remain equivocal, this study supports the growing body of evidence indicating that S. tchadensis was not an obligate biped, but instead represents a late Miocene hominid with knuckle-walking adaptations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marc R Meyer
- Department of Anthropology, Chaffey College, Rancho Cucamonga, CA 91737, USA.
| | - Jason P Jung
- Department of Biology, California State University, San Bernardino, CA 92407, USA
| | - Jeffrey K Spear
- Center for the Study of Human Origins, Department of Anthropology, New York University, 25 Waverly Place, New York, NY 10003, USA; New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology, New York, NY 10024, USA
| | - Isabella Fx Araiza
- Center for the Study of Human Origins, Department of Anthropology, New York University, 25 Waverly Place, New York, NY 10003, USA; New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology, New York, NY 10024, USA
| | - Julia Galway-Witham
- Center for the Study of Human Origins, Department of Anthropology, New York University, 25 Waverly Place, New York, NY 10003, USA; New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology, New York, NY 10024, USA
| | - Scott A Williams
- Center for the Study of Human Origins, Department of Anthropology, New York University, 25 Waverly Place, New York, NY 10003, USA; New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology, New York, NY 10024, USA
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15
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Stamos PA, Alemseged Z. Hominin locomotion and evolution in the Late Miocene to Late Pliocene. J Hum Evol 2023; 178:103332. [PMID: 36947894 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2023.103332] [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: 05/10/2022] [Revised: 01/26/2023] [Accepted: 01/27/2023] [Indexed: 03/24/2023]
Abstract
In this review, we present on the evolution of the locomotor adaptation of hominins in the Late Miocene to Late Pliocene, with emphasis on some of the prominent advances and debates that have occurred over the past fifty years. We start with the challenging issue of defining hominin locomotor grades that are currently used liberally and offer our own working definitions of facultative, habitual, and obligate bipedalism. We then discuss the nature of the Pan-Homo last common ancestor and characterize the locomotor adaptation of Sahelanthropus, Orrorin, and Ardipithecus-often referred to as facultative bipeds-and examine the debates on the extent of bipedality and arboreality in these taxa. Moreover, the question of Middle Pliocene hominin locomotor diversity is addressed based on information derived from the 'Little Foot' specimen from Sterkfontein, footprints from Laetoli, and the Burtele Foot in Ethiopia. Our review suggests that the most convincing evidence for locomotor diversity comes from Burtele, whereas the evidence from Sterkfontein and Laetoli is unconvincing and equivocal, respectively. Finally, we address the decades old issue of the significance of arboreality in the otherwise habitual biped, Australopithecus, with emphasis on Australopithecus afarensis and its implications for the paleobiology of these creatures. We conclude that many of the apelike features encountered, mostly in the upper part of the Australopithecus skeleton, were retained for their significance in climbing. Approaches that have investigated character plasticity and those exploring internal bone structure have shown that the shoulder and limbs in Au. afarensis and Australopithecus africanus were involved in arboreal activities that are thought to be key for feeding, nesting, and predator avoidance. We conclude that many of the so-called retained ape-like features persisted due to stabilizing selection, that early hominins engaged in a considerable amount of arboreality even after Australopithecus had become a habitual biped, and arboreality only ceased to be an important component of hominin locomotor behavior after the emergence of Homo erectus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter A Stamos
- Department of Organismal Biology & Anatomy, The University of Chicago, Anatomy Bldg 201, 1027 E 57th Street, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
| | - Zeresenay Alemseged
- Department of Organismal Biology & Anatomy, The University of Chicago, Anatomy Bldg 201, 1027 E 57th Street, Chicago, IL 60637, USA.
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16
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Cazenave M, Kivell TL. Challenges and perspectives on functional interpretations of australopith postcrania and the reconstruction of hominin locomotion. J Hum Evol 2023; 175:103304. [PMID: 36563461 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2022.103304] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/25/2022] [Revised: 11/15/2022] [Accepted: 11/16/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
In 1994, Hunt published the 'postural feeding hypothesis'-a seminal paper on the origins of hominin bipedalism-founded on the detailed study of chimpanzee positional behavior and the functional inferences derived from the upper and lower limb morphology of the Australopithecus afarensis A.L. 288-1 partial skeleton. Hunt proposed a model for understanding the potential selective pressures on hominins, made robust, testable predictions based on Au. afarensis functional morphology, and presented a hypothesis that aimed to explain the dual functional signals of the Au. afarensis and, more generally, early hominin postcranium. Here we synthesize what we have learned about Au. afarensis functional morphology and the dual functional signals of two new australopith discoveries with relatively complete skeletons (Australopithecus sediba and StW 573 'Australopithecus prometheus'). We follow this with a discussion of three research approaches that have been developed for the purpose of drawing behavioral inferences in early hominins: (1) developments in the study of extant apes as models for understanding hominin origins; (2) novel and continued developments to quantify bipedal gait and locomotor economy in extant primates to infer the locomotor costs from the anatomy of fossil taxa; and (3) novel developments in the study of internal bone structure to extract functional signals from fossil remains. In conclusion of this review, we discuss some of the inherent challenges of the approaches and methodologies adopted to reconstruct the locomotor modes and behavioral repertoires in extinct primate taxa, and notably the assessment of habitual terrestrial bipedalism in early hominins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marine Cazenave
- Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, USA; Skeletal Biology Research Centre, School of Anthropology and Conservation, University of Kent, Canterbury, UK; Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pretoria, South Africa.
| | - Tracy L Kivell
- Skeletal Biology Research Centre, School of Anthropology and Conservation, University of Kent, Canterbury, UK; Centre for the Exploration of the Deep Human Journey, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
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17
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Urciuoli A, Alba DM. Systematics of Miocene apes: State of the art of a neverending controversy. J Hum Evol 2023; 175:103309. [PMID: 36716680 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2022.103309] [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: 05/05/2022] [Revised: 12/08/2022] [Accepted: 12/09/2022] [Indexed: 01/29/2023]
Abstract
Hominoids diverged from cercopithecoids during the Oligocene in Afro-Arabia, initially radiating in that continent and subsequently dispersing into Eurasia. From the Late Miocene onward, the geographic range of hominoids progressively shrank, except for hominins, which dispersed out of Africa during the Pleistocene. Although the overall picture of hominoid evolution is clear based on available fossil evidence, many uncertainties persist regarding the phylogeny and paleobiogeography of Miocene apes (nonhominin hominoids), owing to their sparse record, pervasive homoplasy, and the decimated current diversity of this group. We review Miocene ape systematics and evolution by focusing on the most parsimonious cladograms published during the last decade. First, we provide a historical account of the progress made in Miocene ape phylogeny and paleobiogeography, report an updated classification of Miocene apes, and provide a list of Miocene ape species-locality occurrences together with an analysis of their paleobiodiversity dynamics. Second, we discuss various critical issues of Miocene ape phylogeny and paleobiogeography (hylobatid and crown hominid origins, plus the relationships of Oreopithecus) in the light of the highly divergent results obtained from cladistic analyses of craniodental and postcranial characters separately. We conclude that cladistic efforts to disentangle Miocene ape phylogeny are potentially biased by a long-branch attraction problem caused by the numerous postcranial similarities shared between hylobatids and hominids-despite the increasingly held view that they are likely homoplastic to a large extent, as illustrated by Sivapithecus and Pierolapithecus-and further aggravated by abundant missing data owing to incomplete preservation. Finally, we argue that-besides the recovery of additional fossils, the retrieval of paleoproteomic data, and a better integration between cladistics and geometric morphometrics-Miocene ape phylogenetics should take advantage of total-evidence (tip-dating) Bayesian methods of phylogenetic inference combining morphologic, molecular, and chronostratigraphic data. This would hopefully help ascertain whether hylobatid divergence was more basal than currently supported.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessandro Urciuoli
- Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain; Division of Palaeoanthropology, Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History Museum Frankfurt, Senckenberganlage 25, 60325 Frankfurt am Main, Germany; Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - David M Alba
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain.
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18
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Macaluso L, Mannion PD, Evans SE, Carnevale G, Monti S, Marchitelli D, Delfino M. Biogeographic history of Palearctic caudates revealed by a critical appraisal of their fossil record quality and spatio-temporal distribution. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2022; 9:220935. [PMID: 36465678 PMCID: PMC9709575 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.220935] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2022] [Accepted: 11/09/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
The disjunct geographical range of many lineages of caudates points to a complex evolutionary and biogeographic history that cannot be disentangled by only considering the present-day distribution of salamander biodiversity. Here, we provide a critical reappraisal of the published fossil record of caudates from the Palearctic and quantitatively evaluate the quality of the group's fossil record. Stem-Urodela and Karauridae were widespread in the Palearctic in the Middle Jurassic, suggesting an earlier, unsampled diversification for this group. Cryptobranchidae reached Europe no later than the Oligocene, but this clade was subsequently extirpated from this continent, as well as from western and central Asia. The relatively recent appearance of hynobiids in the fossil record (Early Miocene) is most likely an artefact of a taphonomic bias against the preservation of high-mountain, stream-type environments which early members likely inhabited. Salamandroids first appear in Europe, expanding into Asia by the Miocene. The apparently enigmatic and disjunct distribution of extant caudate lineages is therefore explained by a wider past geographical range, as testified by the fossil record, which was fragmented during the late Cenozoic by a combination of tectonic (i.e. the uplift of the Tibetan Plateau) and climatic drivers, resulting in regional extirpations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Loredana Macaluso
- Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, Università degli Studi di Torino, Via Valperga Caluso 35, 10125, Turin, Italy
| | - Philip D. Mannion
- Department of Earth Sciences, University College London, WC1E 6BT London, UK
| | - Susan E. Evans
- Research Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University College London, WC1E 6BT London, UK
| | - Giorgio Carnevale
- Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, Università degli Studi di Torino, Via Valperga Caluso 35, 10125, Turin, Italy
| | - Sara Monti
- Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, Università degli Studi di Torino, Via Valperga Caluso 35, 10125, Turin, Italy
| | - Domenico Marchitelli
- Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, Università degli Studi di Torino, Via Valperga Caluso 35, 10125, Turin, Italy
| | - Massimo Delfino
- Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, Università degli Studi di Torino, Via Valperga Caluso 35, 10125, Turin, Italy
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTAICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
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19
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Postcranial evidence of late Miocene hominin bipedalism in Chad. Nature 2022; 609:94-100. [PMID: 36002567 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-022-04901-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2020] [Accepted: 05/24/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Bipedal locomotion is one of the key adaptations that define the hominin clade. Evidence of bipedalism is known from postcranial remains of late Miocene hominins as early as 6 million years ago (Ma) in eastern Africa1-4. Bipedality of Sahelanthropus tchadensis was hitherto inferred about 7 Ma in central Africa (Chad) based on cranial evidence5-7. Here we present postcranial evidence of the locomotor behaviour of S. tchadensis, with new insights into bipedalism at the early stage of hominin evolutionary history. The original material was discovered at locality TM 266 of the Toros-Ménalla fossiliferous area and consists of one left femur and two, right and left, ulnae. The morphology of the femur is most parsimonious with habitual bipedality, and the ulnae preserve evidence of substantial arboreal behaviour. Taken together, these findings suggest that hominins were already bipeds at around 7 Ma but also suggest that arboreal clambering was probably a significant part of their locomotor repertoire.
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20
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Alba DM, Robles JM, Casanovas-Vilar I, Beamud E, Bernor RL, Cirilli O, DeMiguel D, Galindo J, Llopart I, Pons-Monjo G, Sánchez IM, Vinuesa V, Garcés M. A revised (earliest Vallesian) age for the hominoid-bearing locality of Can Mata 1 based on new magnetostratigraphic and biostratigraphic data from Abocador de Can Mata (Vallès-Penedès Basin, NE Iberian Peninsula). J Hum Evol 2022; 170:103237. [PMID: 35988385 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2022.103237] [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: 03/15/2022] [Revised: 07/06/2022] [Accepted: 07/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
The Abocador de Can Mata (ACM) composite stratigraphic sequence (els Hostalets de Pierola, Vallès-Penedès Basin, NE Iberian Peninsula) has yielded a diverse primate assemblage from the late Aragonian (Middle to Late Miocene). Detailed litho-, bio-, and magnetostratigraphic control has enabled an accurate dating of these fossil remains. Comparable data, however, were lacking for the nearby locality of Can Mata 1 (CM1), which yielded a dryopithecine canine of a female individual. Given the lack of hipparionin equids and giraffids, CM1 has been correlated to the latest Aragonian (Mammal Neogene [MN] zone MN7+8). Here we revise the age of CM1 based on fieldwork and associated paleomagnetic samplings undertaken in 2018-2021. Our results extend the ACM composite sequence upward and indicate that CM1 correlates to the earliest Vallesian (MN9). The updated ACM sequence has a thickness of ∼300 m and comprises 12 magnetozones correlated to subchrons C5Ar.1r to C5n.2n (∼12.6-11.1 Ma; latest MN6 to earliest MN9, late Aragonian to earliest Vallesian). CM1 is correlated to C5r.1r (11.146-11.056 Ma), with an interpolated age of 11.11 Ma, thus postdating the dispersal of hipparionin horses into the Vallès-Penedès Basin-which is correlated to the previous subchron C5r.1n, with an interpolated age of 11.18 Ma, and by definition marks the beginning of the Vallesian. CM1 also minimally postdates the earliest record of giraffids at ACM-representing their earliest well-dated occurrence in the basin-being correlated to C5r.1n with an interpolated age of 11.11 Ma. We conclude that CM1 has an earliest Vallesian (MN9) age of ∼11.1 Ma, intermediate between the Aragonian dryopithecins and the Vallesian hispanopithecins. Ongoing paleontological surveillance at ACM thus offers the prospect to yield additional earliest Vallesian ape remains, which are essential to clarify their taxonomic allocation as well as to confirm whether hispanopithecins evolved locally from dryopithecins rather than immigrating from elsewhere during MN9.
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Affiliation(s)
- David M Alba
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain.
| | - Josep M Robles
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Isaac Casanovas-Vilar
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Elisabet Beamud
- Paleomagnetic Laboratory CCiTUB-Geo3Bcn CSIC, c/ Lluís Solé i Sabarís s/n, 08028 Barcelona, Spain; Institut Geomodels, Grup de Recerca Consolidat de Geodinàmica i Anàlisi de Conques, Universitat de Barcelona, c/ Martí i Franquès s/n, 08028, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Raymond L Bernor
- College of Medicine, Department of Anatomy, Laboratory of Evolutionary Biology, 520 W St. N.W., 20059, Washington, DC, USA; Human Origins Program, Department of Anthropology, Smithsonian Institution, 20560, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Omar Cirilli
- College of Medicine, Department of Anatomy, Laboratory of Evolutionary Biology, 520 W St. N.W., 20059, Washington, DC, USA; Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, Paleo[Fab]Lab, Università degli Studi di Firenze, Via G. La Pira 4, 50121, Firenze, Italy
| | - Daniel DeMiguel
- ARAID Foundation/Universidad de Zaragoza, Departamento de Ciencias de la Tierra, and Instituto Universitario de Investigación en Ciencias Ambientales de Aragón (IUCA), Pedro Cerbuna 12, 50009 Zaragoza, Spain; Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Jordi Galindo
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Itziar Llopart
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Guillem Pons-Monjo
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Israel M Sánchez
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Víctor Vinuesa
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Miguel Garcés
- Institut Geomodels, Grup de Recerca Consolidat de Geodinàmica i Anàlisi de Conques, Universitat de Barcelona, c/ Martí i Franquès s/n, 08028, Barcelona, Spain; Departament de Dinàmica de la Terra i de l'Oceà, Facultat de Ciències de la Terra, Universitat de Barcelona, c/ Martí i Franquès s/n, 08028, Barcelona, Spain
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Kargopoulos N, Valenciano A, Abella J, Kampouridis P, Lechner T, Böhme M. The exceptionally high diversity of small carnivorans from the Late Miocene hominid locality of Hammerschmiede (Bavaria, Germany). PLoS One 2022; 17:e0268968. [PMID: 35830447 PMCID: PMC9278789 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0268968] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2022] [Accepted: 05/05/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
The present study deals with new material of carnivorans (Mustelidae, Mephitidae, Ailuridae, Potamotheriinae and Viverridae) from the basal Tortonian (Late Miocene, late Astaracian) hominid-bearing locality of Hammerschmiede (Bavaria, Germany). The small carnivoran fauna includes 20 species belonging to nine different subfamilies (Guloninae, Lutrinae, Mellivorinae, Potamotheriinae, Leptarctinae, Mephitinae, Simocyoninae, Genettinae and Viverrinae). The identified forms include: “Martes” sansaniensis, “Martes” cf. munki, “Martes” sp., Circamustela hartmanni n. sp., Laphyctis mustelinus, Guloninae indet., Eomellivora moralesi, Vishnuonyx neptuni, Paralutra jaegeri, Lartetictis cf. dubia, Trocharion albanense, Palaeomeles pachecoi, Proputorius sansaniensis, Proputorius pusillus, Alopecocyon goeriachensis, Simocyoninae indet., Potamotherium sp., Semigenetta sansaniensis, Semigenetta grandis and Viverrictis modica. The new species Circamustela hartmanni n. sp. is differentiated from the other members of the genus by its small size and the morphology of its dental cusps in the upper and lower carnassials. This is one of the highest reported taxonomic diversities for fossil small carnivorans in the Miocene of Europe, including also first and last occurrences for several genera and species. Additionally, the assemblage comprises some rare taxa such as Palaeomeles pachecoi and Eomellivora moralesi. An ecomorphological comparison of the discovered taxa reveals possible cases of competition and niche partitioning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nikolaos Kargopoulos
- Department of Geosciences, Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany
- * E-mail: (NK); (AV)
| | - Alberto Valenciano
- Departamento de Ciencias de la Tierra, Universidad de Zaragoza and Instituto Universitario de Investigación en Ciencias Ambientales de Aragón (IUCA), Zaragoza, Zaragoza, Spain
- Research and Exhibitions Department, Iziko Museums of South Africa, Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa
- * E-mail: (NK); (AV)
| | - Juan Abella
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
- Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad, Quito, Pichincha, Ecuador
| | - Panagiotis Kampouridis
- Department of Geosciences, Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany
| | - Thomas Lechner
- Department of Geosciences, Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany
- Senckenberg Centre for Human Evolution and Paleoenvironment (HEP), Tübingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany
| | - Madelaine Böhme
- Department of Geosciences, Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany
- Senckenberg Centre for Human Evolution and Paleoenvironment (HEP), Tübingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany
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22
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Calcar femorale variation in extant and fossil hominids: Implications for identifying bipedal locomotion in fossil hominins. J Hum Evol 2022; 167:103183. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2022.103183] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2021] [Revised: 03/04/2022] [Accepted: 03/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
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Hartung J, Böhme M. Unexpected cranial sexual dimorphism in the tragulid Dorcatherium naui based on material from the middle to late Miocene localities of Eppelsheim and Hammerschmiede (Germany). PLoS One 2022; 17:e0267951. [PMID: 35584185 PMCID: PMC9116667 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0267951] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/21/2021] [Accepted: 04/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Tragulids, chevrotains or mouse deer, were common faunal elements during the Miocene. During that time, Dorcatherium was the most abundant genus, with D. naui being the first described species. Besides their abundance, until recently only very limited cranial material was available for investigation. Here we present a redescription of the first complete skull of D. naui from the middle to late Miocene locality of Eppelsheim, Germany, based on micro-computed tomography. Furthermore, we present a description and comparison of two additional, new skulls of D. naui from the late Miocene hominid locality Hammerschmiede, Germany. Within Dorcatherium, so far, only three other complete skulls are known, all belonging to D. crassum. A comparison between the three skulls of D. naui and the already known skulls of D. crassum shows that these two species differ in morphological features of the skull, such as laterally facing orbitae, separation of supraorbital foramen from supraorbital groove by a bony bridge, well-developed parietal plateau, prominent nuchal tubercle, less-developed nuchal crests, and the presence of an occipital crest. Moreover, two different osteological morphotypes are present in the skulls of D. naui that can be interpreted as a previously unknown sexual dimorphism. Very similar features are observed in D. crassum, which can be likewise related to the same dimorphism. However, males of D. naui differ from males of D. crassum by the presence of frontoparietal bulges, which were probably used for sexual display and during male-male combats in males of D. naui. For the first time, sexual dimorphism in Dorcatherium is described based on skull characteristics, which are, so far, unknown from any other fossil or extant tragulid.
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Affiliation(s)
- Josephina Hartung
- Department of Geosciences, Eberhard Karls University, Tübingen, Germany
- * E-mail:
| | - Madelaine Böhme
- Department of Geosciences, Eberhard Karls University, Tübingen, Germany
- Senckenberg Centre for Human Evolution and Paleoenvironment (HEP), Tübingen, Germany
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24
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Pilbeam D, Wood B. Contingency rules. J Hum Evol 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2022.103167] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
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25
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Rosen KH, Jones CE, DeSilva JM. Bipedal locomotion in zoo apes: Revisiting the hylobatian model for bipedal origins. EVOLUTIONARY HUMAN SCIENCES 2022; 4:e12. [PMID: 37588936 PMCID: PMC10426021 DOI: 10.1017/ehs.2022.9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Bipedal locomotion is a hallmark of being human. Yet the body form from which bipedalism evolved remains unclear. Specifically, the positional behaviour (i.e. orthograde vs. pronograde) and the length of the lumbar spine (i.e. long and mobile vs. short and stiff) of the last common ancestor (LCA) of the African great apes and humans require further investigation. While fossil evidence would be the most conclusive, the paucity of hominid fossils from 5-10 million years ago makes this field of research challenging. In their absence, extant primate anatomy and behaviour may offer some insight into the ancestral body form from which bipedalism could most easily evolve. Here, we quantify the frequency of bipedalism in a large sample (N = 496) of zoo-housed hominoids and cercopithecines. Our results show that while each studied species of ape and monkey can move bipedally, hylobatids are significantly more bipedal and engage in bipedal locomotion more frequently and for greater distances than any other primate sampled. These data support hypotheses of an orthograde, long-backed and arboreal LCA, which is consistent with hominoid fossils from the middle-to-late Miocene. If true, knuckle-walking evolved in parallel in Pan and Gorilla, and the human body form, particularly the long lower back and orthograde posture, is conserved.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kyle H. Rosen
- Department of Anthropology, Dartmouth College, 6047 Silsby Hall, Hanover, NH, USA
| | - Caroline E. Jones
- Department of Psychology, University of Georgia, 125 Baldwin Street, Athens, GA, USA
| | - Jeremy M. DeSilva
- Department of Anthropology, Dartmouth College, 6047 Silsby Hall, Hanover, NH, USA
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26
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Wennemann SE, Lewton KL, Orr CM, Almécija S, Tocheri MW, Jungers WL, Patel BA. A geometric morphometric approach to investigate primate proximal phalanx diaphysis shape. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2022; 177:581-602. [PMID: 35755956 PMCID: PMC9231826 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.24460] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
Current approaches to quantify phalangeal curvature assume that the long axis of the bone's diaphysis approximates the shape of a portion of a circle (included angle method) or a parabola (second-degree polynomial method). Here we developed, tested, and employed an alternative geometric morphometrics-based approach to quantify diaphysis shape of proximal phalanges in humans, apes and monkeys with diverse locomotor behaviors. 100 landmarks of the central longitudinal axis were extracted from 3D surface models and analyzed using 2DGM methods, including Generalized Procrustes Analyses. Principal components analyses were performed and PC1 scores (>80% of variation) represented the dorsopalmar shape of the bone's central longitudinal axis and separated taxa consistently and in accord with known locomotor behavioral profiles. The most suspensory taxa, including orangutans, hylobatids and spider monkeys, had significantly lower PC1 scores reflecting the greatest amounts of phalangeal curvature. In contrast, bipedal humans and the quadrupedal cercopithecoid monkeys sampled (baboons, proboscis monkeys) exhibited significantly higher PC1 scores reflecting flatter phalanges. African ape (gorillas, chimpanzees and bonobos) phalanges fell between these two extremes and were not significantly different from each other. PC1 scores were significantly correlated with both included angle and the a coefficient of a second-degree polynomial calculated from the same landmark dataset, but had a significantly higher correlation with included angles. Our alternative approach for quantifying diaphysis shape of proximal phalanges to investigate dorsopalmar curvature is replicable and does not assume a priori either a circle or parabola model of shape, making it an attractive alternative compared with existing methodologies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sophie E. Wennemann
- Department of Integrative Anatomical Sciences, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90033, USA
| | - Kristi L. Lewton
- Department of Integrative Anatomical Sciences, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90033, USA,Human and Evolutionary Biology Section, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089, USA
| | - Caley M. Orr
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO 80045, USA,Department of Anthropology, University of Colorado Denver, Denver, CO 80217, USA
| | - Sergio Almécija
- Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History, Central Park West at 79th Street, New York, NY 10024, USA,New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology, New York, NY, USA,Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Matthew W. Tocheri
- Department of Anthropology, Lakehead University, Thunder Bay, Ontario P7B 5E1, Canada,Human Origins Program, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC 20013, USA,Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales, 2522, Australia
| | - William L. Jungers
- Department of Anatomical Sciences, Stony Brook University School of Medicine, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA,Association Vahatra, BP 3972, Antananarivo 101, Madagascar
| | - Biren A. Patel
- Department of Integrative Anatomical Sciences, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90033, USA,Human and Evolutionary Biology Section, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089, USA,Corresponding author: Biren A. Patel, 1333 San Pablo Street, BMT 404, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles CA, 90033, USA;
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27
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Pougnault L, Levréro F, Leroux M, Paulet J, Bombani P, Dentressangle F, Deruti L, Mulot B, Lemasson A. Social pressure drives "conversational rules" in great apes. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2021; 97:749-765. [PMID: 34873806 DOI: 10.1111/brv.12821] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2020] [Revised: 11/19/2021] [Accepted: 11/25/2021] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
In the last decade, two hypotheses, one on the evolution of animal vocal communication in general and the other on the origins of human language, have gained ground. The first hypothesis argues that the complexity of communication co-evolved with the complexity of sociality. Species forming larger groups with complex social networks have more elaborate vocal repertoires. The second hypothesis posits that the core of communication is represented not only by what can be expressed by an isolated caller, but also by the way that vocal interactions are structured, language being above all a social act. Primitive forms of conversational rules based on a vocal turn-taking principle are thought to exist in primates. To support and bring together these hypotheses, more comparative studies of socially diverse species at different levels of the primate phylogeny are needed. However, the majority of available studies focus on monkeys, primates that are distant from the human lineage. Great apes represent excellent candidates for such comparative studies because of their phylogenetic proximity to humans and their varied social lives. We propose that studying vocal turn-taking in apes could address several major gaps regarding the social relevance of vocal turn-taking and the evolutionary trajectory of this behaviour among anthropoids. Indeed, how the social structure of a species may influence the vocal interaction patterns observed among group members remains an open question. We gathered data from the literature as well as original unpublished data (where absent in the literature) on four great ape species: chimpanzees Pan troglodytes, bonobos Pan paniscus, western lowland gorillas Gorilla gorilla gorilla and Bornean orang-utans Pongo pygmaeus. We found no clear-cut relationship between classical social complexity metrics (e.g. number of group members, interaction rates) and vocal complexity parameters (e.g. repertoire size, call rates). Nevertheless, the nature of the society (i.e. group composition, diversity and valence of social bonds) and the type of vocal interaction patterns (isolated calling, call overlap, turn-taking-based vocal exchanges) do appear to be related. Isolated calling is the main vocal pattern found in the species with the smallest social networks (orang-utan), while the other species show vocal interactions that are structured according to temporal rules. A high proportion of overlapping vocalisations is found in the most competitive species (chimpanzee), while vocal turn-taking predominates in more tolerant bonobos and gorillas. Also, preferentially interacting individuals and call types used to interact are not randomly distributed. Vocal overlap ('chorusing') and vocal exchange ('conversing') appear as possible social strategies used to advertise/strengthen social bonds. Our analyses highlight that: (i) vocal turn-taking is also observed in non-human great apes, revealing universal rules for conversing that may be deeply rooted in the primate lineage; (ii) vocal interaction patterns match the species' social lifestyle; (iii) although limited to four species here, adopting a targeted comparative approach could help to identify the multiple and subtle factors underlying social and vocal complexity. We believe that vocal interaction patterns form the basis of a promising field of investigation that may ultimately improve our understanding of the socially driven evolution of communication.
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Affiliation(s)
- Loïc Pougnault
- Univ Rennes, Normandie Univ, CNRS, EthoS (Éthologie animale et humaine) - UMR 6552, 263 avenue du Général Leclerc, Rennes, 35042, France.,Université de Lyon/Saint-Etienne, CNRS, Equipe Neuro-Ethologie Sensorielle, ENES/CRNL, UMR5292, INSERM UMR_S 1028, 23 rue Paul Michelon, Saint-Etienne, 42023, France.,ZooParc de Beauval & Beauval Nature, Avenue du Blanc, Saint Aignan, 41110, France
| | - Florence Levréro
- Université de Lyon/Saint-Etienne, CNRS, Equipe Neuro-Ethologie Sensorielle, ENES/CRNL, UMR5292, INSERM UMR_S 1028, 23 rue Paul Michelon, Saint-Etienne, 42023, France
| | - Maël Leroux
- Department of Comparative Linguistics, University of Zürich, Thurgauerstrasse 30, Zürich-Oerlikon, 8050, Switzerland.,Budongo Conservation Field Station, Masindi, Uganda.,Center for the Interdisciplinary Study of Language Evolution (ISLE), University of Zürich, Plattenstrasse 54, Zürich, 8032, Switzerland
| | - Julien Paulet
- Univ Rennes, Normandie Univ, CNRS, EthoS (Éthologie animale et humaine) - UMR 6552, 263 avenue du Général Leclerc, Rennes, 35042, France
| | - Pablo Bombani
- NGO Mbou-Mon-Tour, Nkala, Territoire de Bolodo, Maï-Ndombe, Democratic Republic of the Congo
| | - Fabrice Dentressangle
- Université de Lyon/Saint-Etienne, CNRS, Equipe Neuro-Ethologie Sensorielle, ENES/CRNL, UMR5292, INSERM UMR_S 1028, 23 rue Paul Michelon, Saint-Etienne, 42023, France
| | - Laure Deruti
- Université de Lyon/Saint-Etienne, CNRS, Equipe Neuro-Ethologie Sensorielle, ENES/CRNL, UMR5292, INSERM UMR_S 1028, 23 rue Paul Michelon, Saint-Etienne, 42023, France
| | - Baptiste Mulot
- ZooParc de Beauval & Beauval Nature, Avenue du Blanc, Saint Aignan, 41110, France
| | - Alban Lemasson
- Univ Rennes, Normandie Univ, CNRS, EthoS (Éthologie animale et humaine) - UMR 6552, 263 avenue du Général Leclerc, Rennes, 35042, France.,Institut Universitaire de France, 1 rue Descartes, Paris, 75231, France
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28
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Lequin M, Marchal F. Comment la connaissance de la diversité posturo-locomotrice des primates a-t-elle transformé la compréhension de celle des hominines ? REVUE DE PRIMATOLOGIE 2021. [DOI: 10.4000/primatologie.10214] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
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29
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Pawłowski B, Żelaźniewicz A. The evolution of perennially enlarged breasts in women: a critical review and a novel hypothesis. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2021; 96:2794-2809. [PMID: 34254729 DOI: 10.1111/brv.12778] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2020] [Revised: 07/02/2021] [Accepted: 07/02/2021] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
The possession of permanent, adipose breasts in women is a uniquely human trait that develops during puberty, well in advance of the first pregnancy. The adaptive role and developmental pattern of this breast morphology, unusual among primates, remains an unresolved conundrum. The evolutionary origins of this trait have been the focus of many hypotheses, which variously suggest that breasts are a product of sexual selection or of natural selection due to their putative role in assisting in nursing or as a thermoregulatory organ. Alternative hypotheses assume that permanent breasts are a by-product of other evolutionary changes. We review and evaluate these hypotheses in the light of recent literature on breast morphology, physiology, phylogeny, ontogeny, sex differences, and genetics in order to highlight their strengths and flaws and to propose a coherent perspective and a new hypothesis on the evolutionary origins of perennially enlarged breasts in women. We propose that breasts appeared as early as Homo ergaster, originally as a by-product of other coincident evolutionary processes of adaptive significance. These included an increase in subcutaneous fat tissue (SFT) in response to the demands of thermoregulatory and energy storage, and of the ontogenetic development of the evolving brain. An increase in SFT triggered an increase in oestradiol levels (E2). An increase in meat in the diet of early Homo allowed for further hormonal changes, such as greater dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA/S) synthesis, which were crucial for brain evolution. DHEA/S is also easily converted to E2 in E2-sensitive body parts, such as breasts and gluteofemoral regions, causing fat accumulation in these regions, enabling the evolution of perennially enlarged breasts. Furthermore, it is also plausible that after enlarged breasts appeared, they were co-opted for other functions, such as attracting mates and indicating biological condition. Finally, we argue that the multifold adaptive benefits of SFT increase and hormonal changes outweighed the possible costs of perennially enlarged breasts, enabling their further development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bogusław Pawłowski
- Department of Human Biology, University of Wrocław, ul. Przybyszewskiego 63, Wrocław, 51-148, Poland
| | - Agnieszka Żelaźniewicz
- Department of Human Biology, University of Wrocław, ul. Przybyszewskiego 63, Wrocław, 51-148, Poland
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Jung H, Simons EA, von Cramon-Taubadel N. Examination of magnitudes of integration in the catarrhine vertebral column. J Hum Evol 2021; 156:102998. [PMID: 34020295 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2021.102998] [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: 01/12/2021] [Revised: 03/27/2021] [Accepted: 03/27/2021] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
The evolution of novel vertebral morphologies observed in humans and other extant hominoids may be related to changes in the magnitudes and/or patterns of covariation among traits. To examine this, we tested magnitudes of integration in the vertebral column of cercopithecoids and hominoids, including humans. Three-dimensional surface scans of 14 vertebral elements from 30 Cercopithecus, 32 Chlorocebus, 39 Macaca, 45 Hylobates, 31 Pan, and 86 Homo specimens were used. A resampling method was used to generate distributions of integration coefficient of variation scores for vertebral elements individually using interlandmark distances. Interspecific comparisons of mean integration coefficient of variation were conducted using Mann-Whitney U tests with Bonferroni adjustment. The results showed that hominoids generally had lower mean integration coefficient of variation than cercopithecoids. In addition, humans showed lower mean integration coefficient of variation than other hominoids in their last thoracic and lumbar vertebrae. Cercopithecoids and Hylobates showed relatively lower mean integration coefficient of variation in cervical vertebrae than in thoracolumbar vertebrae. Pan and Homo showed relatively lower mean integration coefficient of variation in the last thoracic and lumbar vertebrae in the thoracolumbar region, except for the L1 of Pan. The results suggest fewer integration-mediated constraints on the evolution of vertebral morphology in hominoids when compared with cercopithecoids. The weaker magnitudes of integration in lumbar vertebrae in humans when compared with chimpanzees likewise suggest fewer constraints on the evolution of novel lumbar vertebrae morphology in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hyunwoo Jung
- Buffalo Human Evolutionary Morphology Lab, Department of Anthropology, University at Buffalo, SUNY, Buffalo, NY, USA.
| | - Evan A Simons
- Buffalo Human Evolutionary Morphology Lab, Department of Anthropology, University at Buffalo, SUNY, Buffalo, NY, USA
| | - Noreen von Cramon-Taubadel
- Buffalo Human Evolutionary Morphology Lab, Department of Anthropology, University at Buffalo, SUNY, Buffalo, NY, USA
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Brown JG. Ticks, Hair Loss, and Non-Clinging Babies: A Novel Tick-Based Hypothesis for the Evolutionary Divergence of Humans and Chimpanzees. Life (Basel) 2021; 11:435. [PMID: 34066043 PMCID: PMC8150933 DOI: 10.3390/life11050435] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2021] [Revised: 04/12/2021] [Accepted: 04/30/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Human straight-legged bipedalism represents one of the earliest events in the evolutionary split between humans (Homo spp.) and chimpanzees (Pan spp.), although its selective basis is a mystery. A carrying-related hypothesis has recently been proposed in which hair loss within the hominin lineage resulted in the inability of babies to cling to their mothers, requiring mothers to walk upright to carry their babies. However, a question remains for this model: what drove the hair loss that resulted in upright walking? Observers since Darwin have suggested that hair loss in humans may represent an evolutionary strategy for defence against ticks. The aim of this review is to propose and evaluate a novel tick-based evolutionary hypothesis wherein forest fragmentation in hominin paleoenvironments created conditions that were favourable for tick proliferation, selecting for hair loss in hominins and grooming behaviour in chimpanzees as divergent anti-tick strategies. It is argued that these divergent anti-tick strategies resulted in different methods for carrying babies, driving the locomotor divergence of humans and chimpanzees.
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Almécija S, Hammond AS, Thompson NE, Pugh KD, Moyà-Solà S, Alba DM. Fossil apes and human evolution. Science 2021; 372:372/6542/eabb4363. [DOI: 10.1126/science.abb4363] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
Humans diverged from apes (chimpanzees, specifically) toward the end of the Miocene ~9.3 million to 6.5 million years ago. Understanding the origins of the human lineage (hominins) requires reconstructing the morphology, behavior, and environment of the chimpanzee-human last common ancestor. Modern hominoids (that is, humans and apes) share multiple features (for example, an orthograde body plan facilitating upright positional behaviors). However, the fossil record indicates that living hominoids constitute narrow representatives of an ancient radiation of more widely distributed, diverse species, none of which exhibit the entire suite of locomotor adaptations present in the extant relatives. Hence, some modern ape similarities might have evolved in parallel in response to similar selection pressures. Current evidence suggests that hominins originated in Africa from Miocene ape ancestors unlike any living species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sergio Almécija
- Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), New York, NY 10024, USA
- New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology at AMNH, New York, NY 10024, USA
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont (ICP), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Ashley S. Hammond
- Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), New York, NY 10024, USA
- New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology at AMNH, New York, NY 10024, USA
| | - Nathan E. Thompson
- Department of Anatomy, New York Institute of Technology (NYIT) College of Osteopathic Medicine, Old Westbury, NY 11568, USA
| | - Kelsey D. Pugh
- Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), New York, NY 10024, USA
- New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology at AMNH, New York, NY 10024, USA
| | - Salvador Moyà-Solà
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont (ICP), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
- Institució Catalana de Recerca i Estudis Avançats (ICREA), 08010 Barcelona, Spain
- Unitat d’Antropologia Biològica, Departament de Biologia Animal, Biologia Vegetal i Ecologia, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - David M. Alba
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont (ICP), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
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Anthropological Prosociality via Sub-Group Level Selection. Integr Psychol Behav Sci 2021; 56:180-205. [PMID: 33893612 DOI: 10.1007/s12124-021-09606-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 03/01/2021] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
A perennial challenge of evolutionary psychology is explaining prosocial traits such as a preference for fairness rather than inequality, compassion towards suffering, and an instinctive ability to coordinate within small teams. Considering recent fossil evidence and a novel logical test, we deem present explanations insufficiently explanatory of the divergence of hominins. In answering this question, we focus on the divergence of hominins from the last common ancestor (LCA) shared with Pan. We consider recent fossil discoveries that indicate the LCA was bipedal, which reduces the cogency of this explanation for hominin development. We also review evolutionary theory that claims to explain how hominins developed into modern humans, however it is found that no mechanism differentiates hominins from other primates. Either the mechanism was available to the last common ancestor (LCA) (with P. troglodytes as its proxy), or because early hominins had insufficient cognition to utilise the mechanism. A novel mechanism, sub-group level selection (sGLS) is hypothesised by triangulating two pieces of data rarely considered by evolutionary biologists. These are behavioural dimorphism of Pan (chimpanzees and bonobos) that remain identifiable in modern humans, and the social behaviour of primate troops in a savannah ecology. We then contend that sGLS supplied an exponential effect which was available to LCA who left the forest, but was not sufficiently available to any other primates. In conclusion, while only indirectly supported by various evidence, sGLS is found to be singularly and persuasively explanatory of human's unique evolutionary story.
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Carlson KJ, Green DJ, Jashashvili T, Pickering TR, Heaton JL, Beaudet A, Stratford D, Crompton R, Kuman K, Bruxelles L, Clarke RJ. The pectoral girdle of StW 573 ('Little Foot') and its implications for shoulder evolution in the Hominina. J Hum Evol 2021; 158:102983. [PMID: 33888323 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2021.102983] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2020] [Revised: 02/20/2021] [Accepted: 02/23/2021] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
The ca. 3.67 Ma adult skeleton known as 'Little Foot' (StW 573), recovered from Sterkfontein Member 2 breccia in the Silberberg Grotto, is remarkable for its morphology and completeness. Preservation of clavicles and scapulae, including essentially complete right-side elements, offers opportunities to assess morphological and functional aspects of a nearly complete Australopithecus pectoral girdle. Here we describe the StW 573 pectoral girdle and offer quantitative comparisons to those of extant hominoids and selected homininans. The StW 573 pectoral girdle combines features intermediate between those of humans and other apes: a long and curved clavicle, suggesting a relatively dorsally positioned scapula; an enlarged and uniquely proportioned supraspinous fossa; a relatively cranially oriented glenoid fossa; and ape-like reinforcement of the axillary margin by a stout ventral bar. StW 573 scapulae are as follows: smaller than those of some homininans (i.e., KSD-VP-1/1 and KNM-ER 47000A), larger than others (i.e., A.L. 288-1, Sts 7, and MH2), and most similar in size to another australopith from Sterkfontein, StW 431. Moreover, StW 573 and StW 431 exhibit similar structural features along their axillary margins and inferior angles. As the StW 573 pectoral girdle (e.g., scapular configuration) has a greater affinity to that of apes-Gorilla in particular-rather than modern humans, we suggest that the StW 573 morphological pattern appears to reflect adaptations to arboreal behaviors, especially those with the hand positioned above the head, more than human-like manipulatory capabilities. When compared with less complete pectoral girdles from middle/late Miocene apes and that of the penecontemporaneous KSD-VP-1/1 (Australopithecus afarensis), and mindful of consensus views on the adaptiveness of arboreal positional behaviors soliciting abducted glenohumeral joints in early Pliocene taxa, we propose that the StW 573 pectoral girdle is a reasonable model for hypothesizing pectoral girdle configuration of the crown hominin last common ancestor.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kristian J Carlson
- Department of Integrative Anatomical Sciences, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90033, USA; Evolutionary Studies Institute, University of the Witwatersrand, Private Bag 3, Johannesburg WITS 2050, South Africa.
| | - David J Green
- Department of Anatomy, Campbell University School of Osteopathic Medicine, Buies Creek, NC 27506, USA; Evolutionary Studies Institute, University of the Witwatersrand, Private Bag 3, Johannesburg WITS 2050, South Africa
| | - Tea Jashashvili
- Department of Integrative Anatomical Sciences, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90033, USA; Department of Geology and Paleontology, Georgian National Museum, Tbilisi 0105, Georgia
| | - Travis R Pickering
- Department of Anthropology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706, USA; Evolutionary Studies Institute, University of the Witwatersrand, Private Bag 3, Johannesburg WITS 2050, South Africa; Plio-Pleistocene Palaeontology Section, Department of Vertebrates, Ditsong National Museum, Pretoria 0001, South Africa
| | - Jason L Heaton
- Department of Biology, Birmingham-Southern College, Birmingham, AL 35254, USA; Evolutionary Studies Institute, University of the Witwatersrand, Private Bag 3, Johannesburg WITS 2050, South Africa; Plio-Pleistocene Palaeontology Section, Department of Vertebrates, Ditsong National Museum, Pretoria 0001, South Africa
| | - Amélie Beaudet
- School of Geography, Archaeology and Environmental Studies, University of the Witwatersrand, Private Bag 3, Johannesburg WITS 2050 South Africa; Department of Anatomy, University of Pretoria, PO Box 2034, Pretoria 0001, South Africa
| | - Dominic Stratford
- School of Geography, Archaeology and Environmental Studies, University of the Witwatersrand, Private Bag 3, Johannesburg WITS 2050 South Africa
| | - Robin Crompton
- Department of Musculoskeletal Biology, Institute of Life Course and Medical Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool L7 8TX, UK
| | - Kathleen Kuman
- School of Geography, Archaeology and Environmental Studies, University of the Witwatersrand, Private Bag 3, Johannesburg WITS 2050 South Africa
| | - Laurent Bruxelles
- TRACES, UMR 5608 of the French National Centre for Scientific Research, Jean Jaurès University, 31058 Toulouse, France; French National Institute for Preventive Archaeological Researches (INRAP), 30900 Nîmes, France; School of Geography, Archaeology and Environmental Studies, University of the Witwatersrand, Private Bag 3, Johannesburg WITS 2050 South Africa
| | - Ronald J Clarke
- Evolutionary Studies Institute, University of the Witwatersrand, Private Bag 3, Johannesburg WITS 2050, South Africa
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Pina M, Kikuchi Y, Nakatsukasa M, Nakano Y, Kunimatsu Y, Ogihara N, Shimizu D, Takano T, Tsujikawa H, Ishida H. New femoral remains of Nacholapithecus kerioi: Implications for intraspecific variation and Miocene hominoid evolution. J Hum Evol 2021; 155:102982. [PMID: 33862402 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2021.102982] [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: 03/11/2020] [Revised: 02/23/2021] [Accepted: 02/23/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
The middle Miocene stem kenyapithecine Nacholapithecus kerioi (16-15 Ma; Nachola, Kenya) is represented by a large number of isolated fossil remains and one of the most complete skeletons in the hominoid fossil record (KNM-BG 35250). Multiple fieldwork seasons performed by Japanese-Kenyan teams during the last part of the 20th century resulted in the discovery of a large sample of Nacholapithecus fossils. Here, we describe the new femoral remains of Nacholapithecus. In well-preserved specimens, we evaluate sex differences and within-species variation using both qualitative and quantitative traits. We use these data to determine whether these specimens are morphologically similar to the species holotype KNM-BG 35250 (which shows some plastic deformation) and to compare Nacholapithecus with other Miocene hominoids and extant anthropoids to evaluate the distinctiveness of its femur. The new fossil evidence reaffirms previously reported descriptions of some distal femoral traits, namely the morphology of the patellar groove. However, results also show that relative femoral head size in Nacholapithecus is smaller, relative neck length is longer, and neck-shaft angle is lower than previously reported for KNM-BG 35250. These traits have a strong functional signal related to the hip joint kinematics, suggesting that the morphology of the proximal femur in Nacholapithecus might be functionally related to quadrupedal-like behaviors instead of more derived antipronograde locomotor modes. Results further demonstrate that other African Miocene apes (with the exception of Turkanapithecus kalakolensis) generally fall within the Nacholapithecus range of variation, whose overall femoral shape resembles that of Ekembo spp. and Equatorius africanus. Our results accord with the previously inferred locomotor repertoire of Nacholapithecus, indicating a combination of generalized arboreal quadrupedalism combined with other antipronograde behaviors (e.g., vertical climbing).
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Affiliation(s)
- Marta Pina
- Laboratory of Physical Anthropology, Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University, Kyoto, 606-8502, Japan; Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, C/ Columnes S/n, Campus de La UAB, 08193, Cerdanyola Del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain.
| | - Yasuhiro Kikuchi
- Division of Human Anatomy and Biological Anthropology, Department of Anatomy and Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, Saga University, Saga, 849-8501, Japan
| | - Masato Nakatsukasa
- Laboratory of Physical Anthropology, Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University, Kyoto, 606-8502, Japan
| | - Yoshihiko Nakano
- Department of Biological Anthropology, Osaka University, Suita, Osaka, 565-8502, Japan
| | - Yutaka Kunimatsu
- Department of Business Administration, Faculty of Business Administration, Ryukoku University, Kyoto, 612-8577, Japan
| | - Naomichi Ogihara
- Department of Biological Sciences, Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, 113-0033, Japan
| | - Daisuke Shimizu
- Faculty of Nursing and Rehabilitation, Chubu Gakuin University, Seki, Gifu, 504-0837, Japan
| | | | - Hiroshi Tsujikawa
- Department of Rehabilitation, Faculty of Medical Science and Welfare, Tohoku Bunka Gakuen University, Sendai, 981-8551, Japan
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Karakostis FA, Harvati K. New horizons in reconstructing past human behavior: Introducing the "Tübingen University Validated Entheses-based Reconstruction of Activity" method. Evol Anthropol 2021; 30:185-198. [PMID: 33764627 DOI: 10.1002/evan.21892] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2020] [Revised: 09/28/2020] [Accepted: 03/03/2021] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
An accurate reconstruction of habitual activities in past populations and extinct hominin species is a paramount goal of paleoanthropological research, as it can elucidate the evolution of human behavior and the relationship between culture and biology. Variation in muscle attachment (entheseal) morphology has been considered an indicator of habitual activity, and many attempts have been made to use it for this purpose. However, its interpretation remains equivocal due to methodological shortcomings and a paucity of supportive experimental data. Through a series of studies, we have introduced a novel and precise methodology that focuses on reconstructing muscle synergies based on three-dimensional and multivariate analyses among entheses. This approach was validated using uniquely documented anthropological samples, experimental animal studies, histological observations, and geometric morphometrics. Here, we detail, synthesize, and critically discuss the findings of these studies, which overall point to the great potential of entheses in elucidating aspects of past human behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fotios Alexandros Karakostis
- DFG (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft) Center for Advanced Studies "Words, Bones, Genes, Tools," Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Katerina Harvati
- DFG (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft) Center for Advanced Studies "Words, Bones, Genes, Tools," Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.,Paleoanthropology, Senckenberg Centre for Human Evolution and Palaeoenvironment, Institute of Archaeological Sciences, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
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Reassessment of the phylogenetic relationships of the late Miocene apes Hispanopithecus and Rudapithecus based on vestibular morphology. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2021; 118:2015215118. [PMID: 33495351 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2015215118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Late Miocene great apes are key to reconstructing the ancestral morphotype from which earliest hominins evolved. Despite consensus that the late Miocene dryopith great apes Hispanopithecus laietanus (Spain) and Rudapithecus hungaricus (Hungary) are closely related (Hominidae), ongoing debate on their phylogenetic relationships with extant apes (stem hominids, hominines, or pongines) complicates our understanding of great ape and human evolution. To clarify this question, we rely on the morphology of the inner ear semicircular canals, which has been shown to be phylogenetically informative. Based on microcomputed tomography scans, we describe the vestibular morphology of Hispanopithecus and Rudapithecus, and compare them with extant hominoids using landmark-free deformation-based three-dimensional geometric morphometric analyses. We also provide critical evidence about the evolutionary patterns of the vestibular apparatus in living and fossil hominoids under different phylogenetic assumptions for dryopiths. Our results are consistent with the distinction of Rudapithecus and Hispanopithecus at the genus rank, and further support their allocation to the Hominidae based on their derived semicircular canal volumetric proportions. Compared with extant hominids, the vestibular morphology of Hispanopithecus and Rudapithecus most closely resembles that of African apes, and differs from the derived condition of orangutans. However, the vestibular morphologies reconstructed for the last common ancestors of dryopiths, crown hominines, and crown hominids are very similar, indicating that hominines are plesiomorphic in this regard. Therefore, our results do not conclusively favor a hominine or stem hominid status for the investigated dryopiths.
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Prang TC, Ramirez K, Grabowski M, Williams SA. Ardipithecus hand provides evidence that humans and chimpanzees evolved from an ancestor with suspensory adaptations. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2021; 7:eabf2474. [PMID: 33627435 PMCID: PMC7904256 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abf2474] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2020] [Accepted: 01/12/2021] [Indexed: 05/08/2023]
Abstract
The morphology and positional behavior of the last common ancestor of humans and chimpanzees are critical for understanding the evolution of bipedalism. Early 20th century anatomical research supported the view that humans evolved from a suspensory ancestor bearing some resemblance to apes. However, the hand of the 4.4-million-year-old hominin Ardipithecus ramidus purportedly provides evidence that the hominin hand was derived from a more generalized form. Here, we use morphometric and phylogenetic comparative methods to show that Ardipithecus retains suspensory adapted hand morphologies shared with chimpanzees and bonobos. We identify an evolutionary shift in hand morphology between Ardipithecus and Australopithecus that renews questions about the coevolution of hominin manipulative capabilities and obligate bipedalism initially proposed by Darwin. Overall, our results suggest that early hominins evolved from an ancestor with a varied positional repertoire including suspension and vertical climbing, directly affecting the viable range of hypotheses for the origin of our lineage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas C Prang
- Department of Anthropology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA.
| | - Kristen Ramirez
- New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology, New York, NY 10024, USA
- Department of Anthropology, CUNY Graduate Center, New York, NY 10016, USA
- Office of Medical Education, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY 10016, USA
| | - Mark Grabowski
- Research Centre in Evolutionary Anthropology and Palaeoecology, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool, UK
- Centre for Ecology and Evolutionary Synthesis, Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Scott A Williams
- New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology, New York, NY 10024, USA
- Center for the Study of Human Origins, Department of Anthropology, New York University, New York, NY 10003, USA
- Evolutionary Studies Institute, University of the Witwatersrand, Private Bag 3, Wits 2050, Johannesburg, South Africa
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Glebe D, Goldmann N, Lauber C, Seitz S. HBV evolution and genetic variability: Impact on prevention, treatment and development of antivirals. Antiviral Res 2020; 186:104973. [PMID: 33166575 DOI: 10.1016/j.antiviral.2020.104973] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/10/2020] [Revised: 10/31/2020] [Accepted: 11/02/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Hepatitis B virus (HBV) poses a major global health burden with 260 million people being chronically infected and 890,000 dying annually from complications in the course of the infection. HBV is a small enveloped virus with a reverse-transcribed DNA genome that infects hepatocytes and can cause acute and chronic infections of the liver. HBV is endemic in humans and apes representing the prototype member of the viral family Hepadnaviridae and can be divided into 10 genotypes. Hepadnaviruses have been found in all vertebrate classes and constitute an ancient viral family that descended from non-enveloped progenitors more than 360 million years ago. The de novo emergence of the envelope protein gene was accompanied with the liver-tropism and resulted in a tight virus-host association. The oldest HBV genomes so far have been isolated from human remains of the Bronze Age and the Neolithic (~7000 years before present). Despite the remarkable stability of the hepadnaviral genome over geological eras, HBV is able to rapidly evolve within an infected individual under pressure of the immune response or during antiviral treatment. Treatment with currently available antivirals blocking intracellular replication of HBV allows controlling of high viremia and improving liver health during long-term therapy of patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB), but they are not sufficient to cure the disease. New therapy options that cover all HBV genotypes and emerging viral variants will have to be developed soon. In addition to the antiviral treatment of chronically infected patients, continued efforts to expand the global coverage of the currently available HBV vaccine will be one of the key factors for controlling the rising global spread of HBV. Certain improvements of the vaccine (e.g. inclusion of PreS domains) could counteract known problems such as low or no responsiveness of certain risk groups and waning anti-HBs titers leading to occult infections, especially with HBV genotypes E or F. But even with an optimal vaccine and a cure for hepatitis B, global eradication of HBV would be difficult to achieve because of an existing viral reservoir in primates and bats carrying closely related hepadnaviruses with zoonotic potential.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dieter Glebe
- Institute of Medical Virology, Justus Liebig University of Giessen, National Reference Centre for Hepatitis B Viruses and Hepatitis D Viruses, Schubertstr. 81, 35392, Giessen, Germany; German Center for Infection Research (DZIF), Partner Sites Giessen, Heidelberg, Hannover, Germany.
| | - Nora Goldmann
- Institute of Medical Virology, Justus Liebig University of Giessen, National Reference Centre for Hepatitis B Viruses and Hepatitis D Viruses, Schubertstr. 81, 35392, Giessen, Germany
| | - Chris Lauber
- Division of Virus-Associated Carcinogenesis, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), 69120, Heidelberg, Germany; Research Group Computational Virology, Institute for Experimental Virology, TWINCORE, Centre for Experimental and Clinical Infection Research, A Joint Venture Between the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research and the Hannover Medical School, Cluster of Excellence RESIST, Hannover Medical School, 30625, Hannover, Germany; German Center for Infection Research (DZIF), Partner Sites Giessen, Heidelberg, Hannover, Germany
| | - Stefan Seitz
- Division of Virus-Associated Carcinogenesis, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), 69120, Heidelberg, Germany; Department of Infectious Diseases, Molecular Virology, University of Heidelberg, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany; German Center for Infection Research (DZIF), Partner Sites Giessen, Heidelberg, Hannover, Germany.
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Macchiarelli R, Bergeret-Medina A, Marchi D, Wood B. Nature and relationships of Sahelanthropus tchadensis. J Hum Evol 2020; 149:102898. [PMID: 33142154 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2020.102898] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2019] [Revised: 09/30/2020] [Accepted: 09/30/2020] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
A partial left femur (TM 266-01-063) was recovered in July 2001 at Toros-Menalla, Chad, at the same fossiliferous location as the late Miocene holotype of Sahelanthropus tchadensis (the cranium TM 266-01-060-1). It was recognized as a probable primate femur in 2004 when one of the authors was undertaking a taphonomic survey of the fossil assemblages from Toros-Menalla. We are confident the TM 266 femoral shaft belongs to a hominid. It could sample a hominid hitherto unrepresented at Toros-Menalla, but a more parsimonious working hypothesis is that it belongs to S. tchadensis. The differences between TM 266 and the late Miocene Orrorin tugenensis partial femur BAR 1002'00, from Kenya, are consistent with maintaining at least a species-level distinction between S. tchadensis and O. tugenensis. The results of our preliminary functional analysis suggest the TM 266 femoral shaft belongs to an individual that was not habitually bipedal, something that should be taken into account when considering the relationships of S. tchadensis. The circumstances of its discovery should encourage researchers to check to see whether there is more postcranial evidence of S. tchadensis among the fossils recovered from Toros-Menalla.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roberto Macchiarelli
- Unité de Formation Géosciences, Université de Poitiers, 86073, Poitiers, France; Département Homme & Environnement, UMR 7194 CNRS, Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, 75116, Paris, France.
| | | | - Damiano Marchi
- Department of Biology, University of Pisa, 56126, Pisa, Italy; Evolutionary Studies Institute and Centre for Excellence in PalaeoSciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Wits, 2050, South Africa
| | - Bernard Wood
- Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology and Department of Anthropology, George Washington University, Washington, DC, 20052, USA
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Pitirri MK, Vermeulen E, Komza K, Begun DR. Mandibular shape variation in mainland and insular hylobatids. Am J Primatol 2020; 82:e23175. [DOI: 10.1002/ajp.23175] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/04/2019] [Revised: 06/15/2020] [Accepted: 07/03/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- M. Kathleen Pitirri
- Department of Anthropology University of Toronto Toronto Canada
- Department of Anthropology Pennsylvania State University State College Pennsylvania
| | - Erin Vermeulen
- Department of Anthropology University of Toronto Toronto Canada
| | - Klara Komza
- Department of Anthropology University of Toronto Toronto Canada
| | - David R. Begun
- Department of Anthropology University of Toronto Toronto Canada
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Alba DM, Fortuny J, Robles JM, Bernardini F, Pérez de Los Ríos M, Tuniz C, Moyà-Solà S, Zanolli C. A new dryopithecine mandibular fragment from the middle Miocene of Abocador de Can Mata and the taxonomic status of 'Sivapithecus' occidentalis from Can Vila (Vallès-Penedès Basin, NE Iberian Peninsula). J Hum Evol 2020; 145:102790. [PMID: 32652257 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2020.102790] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2019] [Revised: 03/18/2020] [Accepted: 03/19/2020] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- David M Alba
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, Carrer de les Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, 08193, Spain.
| | - Josep Fortuny
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, Carrer de les Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, 08193, Spain
| | - Josep M Robles
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, Carrer de les Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, 08193, Spain
| | - Federico Bernardini
- Centro Fermi, Museo Storico della Fisica e Centro di Studi e Ricerche 'Enrico Fermi', Piazza del Viminale 1, Roma, 00184, Italy; Multidisciplinary Laboratory, The 'Abdus Salam' International Centre for Theoretical Physics, Via Beirut 31, Trieste, 34151, Italy
| | - Miriam Pérez de Los Ríos
- Departamento de Antropología, Facultad de Ciencias Sociales, Universidad de Chile, Ignacio Carrera Pinto, 1045, Ñuñoa, Santiago, Chile
| | - Claudio Tuniz
- Multidisciplinary Laboratory, The 'Abdus Salam' International Centre for Theoretical Physics, Via Beirut 31, Trieste, 34151, Italy; Centro Fermi, Museo Storico della Fisica e Centro di Studi e Ricerche 'Enrico Fermi', Piazza del Viminale 1, Roma, 00184, Italy; Center for Archaeological Science, University of Wollongong, Northfields Ave, Wollongong, NSW, 2522, Australia
| | - Salvador Moyà-Solà
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, Carrer de les Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, 08193, Spain; Unitat d'Antropologia Biològica, Department de Biologia Animal, Biologia Vegetal i Ecologia, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Campus de la UAB, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain; Institució Catalana de Recerca i Estudis Avançats (ICREA), Pg. Lluís Companys 23, Barcelona, 08010, Spain
| | - Clément Zanolli
- Laboratoire PACEA, UMR 5199 CNRS, Université de Bordeaux, allée Geoffroy Saint Hilaire, 33615 Pessac Cedex, France.
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Schroeder L. Revolutionary Fossils, Ancient Biomolecules, and Reflections in Ethics and Decolonization: Paleoanthropology in 2019. AMERICAN ANTHROPOLOGIST 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/aman.13410] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Lauren Schroeder
- Department of Anthropology University of Toronto Mississauga Mississauga ON Canada
- Human Evolution Research Institute University of Cape Town Rondebosch Western Cape South Africa
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Is step width decoupled from pelvic motion in human evolution? Sci Rep 2020; 10:7806. [PMID: 32385415 PMCID: PMC7210942 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-64799-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2020] [Accepted: 04/17/2020] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Humans are the only primate that walk bipedally with adducted hips, valgus knees, and swing-side pelvic drop. These characteristic frontal-plane aspects of bipedalism likely play a role in balance and energy minimization during walking. Understanding when and why these aspects of bipedalism evolved also requires an understanding of how each of these features are interrelated during walking. Here we investigated the relationship between step width, hip adduction, and pelvic list during bipedalism by altering step widths and pelvic motions in humans in ways that both mimic chimpanzee gait as well as an exaggerated human gait. Our results show that altering either step width or pelvic list to mimic those of chimpanzees affects hip adduction, but neither of these gait parameters dramatically affects the other in ways that lead to a chimpanzee-like gait. These results suggest that the evolution of valgus knees and narrow steps in humans may be decoupled from the evolution of the human-like pattern of pelvic list. While the origin of narrow steps in hominins may be linked to minimizing energetic cost of locomotion, the origin of the human-like pattern of pelvic list remains unresolved.
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Mayr G, Lechner T, Böhme M. The large-sized darter Anhinga pannonica (Aves, Anhingidae) from the late Miocene hominid Hammerschmiede locality in Southern Germany. PLoS One 2020; 15:e0232179. [PMID: 32374733 PMCID: PMC7202596 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0232179] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2020] [Accepted: 04/08/2020] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
We report fossils of the darter Anhinga pannonica Lambrecht, 1916 from two late Miocene (Tortonian, 11.62 and 11.44 Ma) avifaunas in Southern Germany. The material from the hominid locality Hammerschmiede near Pforzen represents the most comprehensive record of this species and includes most major postcranial elements except for the tarsometatarsus. We furthermore show that the putative cormorant Phalacrocorax brunhuberi (von Ammon, 1918) from the middle Miocene of Regensburg-Dechbetten is another, previously misclassified, record of A. pannonica, and this may also be true for early Miocene fossils described as P. intermedius Milne-Edwards, 1867. A. pannonica was distinctly larger than extant darters and reached the size of A. grandis from the late Miocene of North America. We detail that only fossils from the Miocene of Europe and Africa can be referred to A. pannonica, whereas putative records from Asia fall within the size range of extant darters. A. pannonica appears to have been a long-living species (16 to 6 Ma) with an extensive distribution from the equator to the northern mid-latitudes. The extinction of large-sized darters in Europe is likely to have been due to climatic cooling in the late Neogene, but the reasons for their disappearance in Africa and South America remain elusive.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gerald Mayr
- Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History Museum Frankfurt, Ornithological Section, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
- * E-mail:
| | - Thomas Lechner
- Senckenberg Center for Human Evolution and Paleoecology (HEP), Eberhard-Karls University Tübingen, Institute for Geoscience, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Madelaine Böhme
- Senckenberg Center for Human Evolution and Paleoecology (HEP), Eberhard-Karls University Tübingen, Institute for Geoscience, Tübingen, Germany
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Urciuoli A, Zanolli C, Beaudet A, Dumoncel J, Santos F, Moyà-Solà S, Alba DM. The evolution of the vestibular apparatus in apes and humans. eLife 2020; 9:e51261. [PMID: 32122463 PMCID: PMC7054002 DOI: 10.7554/elife.51261] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2019] [Accepted: 01/18/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Phylogenetic relationships among extinct hominoids (apes and humans) are controversial due to pervasive homoplasy and the incompleteness of the fossil record. The bony labyrinth might contribute to this debate, as it displays strong phylogenetic signal among other mammals. However, the potential of the vestibular apparatus for phylogenetic reconstruction among fossil apes remains understudied. Here we test and quantify the phylogenetic signal embedded in the vestibular morphology of extant anthropoids (monkeys, apes and humans) and two extinct apes (Oreopithecus and Australopithecus) as captured by a deformation-based 3D geometric morphometric analysis. We also reconstruct the ancestral morphology of various hominoid clades based on phylogenetically-informed maximum likelihood methods. Besides revealing strong phylogenetic signal in the vestibule and enabling the proposal of potential synapomorphies for various hominoid clades, our results confirm the relevance of vestibular morphology for addressing the controversial phylogenetic relationships of fossil apes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessandro Urciuoli
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel CrusafontUniversitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Cerdanyola del VallèsBarcelonaSpain
| | - Clément Zanolli
- Laboratoire PACEA, UMR 5199 CNRS, Université de BordeauxPessacFrance
| | - Amélie Beaudet
- School of Geography, Archaeology and Environmental StudiesUniversity of the WitwatersrandJohannesburgSouth Africa
- Department of AnatomyUniversity of PretoriaPretoriaSouth Africa
| | - Jean Dumoncel
- Laboratoire AMIS, UMR 5288 CNRS, Université de ToulouseToulouseFrance
| | - Frédéric Santos
- Laboratoire PACEA, UMR 5199 CNRS, Université de BordeauxPessacFrance
| | - Salvador Moyà-Solà
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel CrusafontUniversitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Cerdanyola del VallèsBarcelonaSpain
- Institució Catalana de Recerca i Estudis Avançats (ICREA)BarcelonaSpain
- Unitat d’Antropologia (Departament de Biologia Animal, Biologia Vegetal i Ecologia)Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Cerdanyola del VallèsBarcelonaSpain
| | - David M Alba
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel CrusafontUniversitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Cerdanyola del VallèsBarcelonaSpain
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Barras C. Ancient ape offers clues to evolution of two-legged walking. Nature 2019:10.1038/d41586-019-03418-2. [PMID: 33149311 DOI: 10.1038/d41586-019-03418-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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