Reexamining human origins in light of Ardipithecus ramidus.

Full Abstract

Referential models based on extant African apes have dominated reconstructions of early human evolution since Darwin's time. These models visualize fundamental human behaviors as intensifications of behaviors observed in living chimpanzees and/or gorillas (for instance, upright feeding, male dominance displays, tool use, culture, hunting, and warfare). Ardipithecus essentially falsifies such models, because extant apes are highly derived relative to our last common ancestors. Moreover, uniquely derived hominid characters, especially those of locomotion and canine reduction, appear to have emerged shortly after the hominid/chimpanzee divergence. Hence, Ardipithecus provides a new window through which to view our clade's earliest evolution and its ecological context. Early hominids and extant apes are remarkably divergent in many cardinal characters. We can no longer rely on homologies with African apes for accounts of our origins and must turn instead to general evolutionary theory. A proposed adaptive suite for the emergence of Ardipithecus from the last common ancestor that we shared with chimpanzees accounts for these principal ape/human differences, as well as the marked demographic success and cognitive efflorescence of later Plio-Pleistocene hominids.

Author information

Author/s: Lovejoy, C Owen (CO);

Affiliation: Department of Anthropology, School of Biomedical Sciences, Kent State University, Kent, OH 44242-0001, USA. olovejoy(-atsign-)aol.com

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Journal Article; Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

Journal: Science (New York, N.Y.) (Science), published in United States. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2009-Oct; vol 326 (issue 5949) : pp 74e1-8

Dates: Created 2009/10/06; Completed 2009/10/16;

PMID: 19810200, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 10/16/2009, IMS Date: )

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

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