All articles tagged with #bipedalism
A 4.4‑million‑year‑old female fossil named Ardi (Ardipithecus ramidus) shows a mosaic of ape‑like and human‑like traits, including a grasping big toe and an ankle bone adapted for weight transfer, suggesting upright walking evolved from an African ape‑like ancestor and predating Lucy by about a million years.
A new study analyzing 386 hominin fossils across 21 species and 1,000 models suggests body size rose steadily in early humans until about 2 million years ago, when a shift to higher meat intake and improved bipedalism coincided with a rapid ~50-pound increase. This growth likely boosted long-distance travel, hunting, and predator defense, helping Homo erectus and Homo ergaster reach modern-like weights, though some lineages like Homo floresiensis remained small. The research, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, refines how we understand the pace and drivers of human size evolution.
A NHMLAC-led team describes Labrujasuchus expectatus, a beaked, toothless, bipedal crocodile-relative from the Late Triassic found at Ghost Ranch, New Mexico. Though its look mirrors dinosaurs, it’s still crocodile-line, illustrating convergent evolution and filling a gap between earlier and later shuvosaurs.
A new PLOS Biology study analyzing 2,025 primates across 41 species argues that humans’ near-90% right-handedness arises from the combined effects of rapid brain growth and a long leg-to-arm ratio from sustained bipedalism: with legs freed from locomotion, the hands could specialize in manipulation, and the larger brain provided the cognitive substrate, making humans the extreme outlier among primates.
Oxford researchers analyzed 2,025 individuals from 41 primate species using Bayesian models and found that a combination of upright walking (bipedalism) and larger brain size likely drove humans’ strong right-hand bias. Early hominins showed modest right-hand preferences, which intensified in Homo species, culminating in near-universal right-handedness in modern humans, while Homo floresiensis may have had a weaker bias; left-handedness persistence remains unexplained, suggesting a two-stage evolution—freeing the hands for tool use via walking upright, then brain expansion strengthening the bias.
Oxford researchers analyzed data from 2,025 individuals across 41 primate species and found that the near-universal human right-handedness likely stems from two defining human traits—upright walking and larger brains—with limb-length balance helping predict hand preference; other factors like tool use, diet, or habitat did not fully explain the pattern.
A new framework argues humans became predominantly right‑handed as our ancestors first stood upright, freeing hands for tools and later developing larger brains; culture then reinforced the bias, with the strongest right‑hand dominance emerging where brain expansion and specialized bipedal bodies aligned. Left‑handedness persists and may offer competitive advantages or be tied to brain development; findings appear in PLOS Biology.
A Oxford-led study analyzing 2,025 primates suggests humans' extreme right-handedness arose from two key evolutionary milestones—upright walking and brain expansion—that shifted early hominins from mild to strong right-hand bias, with Homo species showing increasing dominance and Homo floresiensis exhibiting weaker bias; the findings support a two-stage process and raise questions about why left-handedness persists and how culture reinforces right-handedness.
An Oxford study across 41 primate species finds that humans aren’t evolutionarily exceptional in handedness once brain size and limb proportions are included; a two-stage path links upright walking (freed hands) and later brain expansion to the strong right-hand bias (mean handedness index 0.76), suggesting the 90% right-handed world arose from changes in movement and brain growth rather than a single gene, with culture possibly reinforcing it.
A 3.4-million-year-old fossil foot from Woranso-Mille, Ethiopia, is now assigned to Australopithecus deyiremeda, suggesting coexisting mid-Pliocene hominins with distinct locomotor traits and diets. Isotopic analysis of eight Burtele teeth shows a forest-based (C3) diet for A. deyiremeda, differing from A. afarensis (Lucy) and implying ecological partitioning. The finding supports a multi-species, branching view of early hominin evolution and challenges the idea of Lucy as a sole direct ancestor.
A 7-million-year-old fossil of Sahelanthropus tchadensis provides strong evidence that early human ancestors could walk upright, suggesting that bipedalism evolved much earlier than previously thought. The discovery was made through detailed analysis of skeletal features, including a femoral tubercle and limb proportions, indicating that this species was adapted for upright walking despite its small brain and tree-dwelling habits.
A 7 million-year-old fossil of Sahelanthropus tchadensis shows evidence of walking upright, suggesting it may be an early human ancestor, based on a newly identified femoral bump and other human-like features.
A new study using 3D technology provides strong evidence that Sahelanthropus tchadensis, a 7-million-year-old fossil, was bipedal, challenging previous debates and suggesting early bipedalism in human evolution.
A new analysis of 7-million-year-old fossils suggests Sahelanthropus tchadensis was likely a bipedal hominin, supported by a newly identified femoral feature indicating upright walking, making it a strong candidate for the earliest human ancestor.
New fossils of Paranthropus boisei from Kenya reveal a mix of gorilla-like fingers and human-like feet, suggesting this extinct species was a proficient biped with strong hands for foraging, challenging previous notions of its clumsiness and highlighting its successful adaptation for over a million years.