The Best in Science News and Amazing Breakthroughs
Around 7 million years ago, a little creature braved wildcats and hyenas to cross the floodplains of Bulgaria – and she may have done so on two legs.In a press statement, the researchers who analyzed the ancient thighbone posit that this compact creature may have therefore been our premier predecessor – but the claim is not without controversy.
, including the implication that humanity emerged in the Balkans rather than Africa, for various reasons, including a dearth of evidence.was only known from two fossils: a lower jawbone found in Greece in 1944 and a premolar tooth found in Bulgaria in 2012. The latter was unearthed at the Azmaka excavation site, the same place where the previously mentioned fossil femur was found in 2016.adult female. For comparison, her femur was similar in size to that of the meat-eating mammals that prowled the plains, including giant otters, early hyenas, and proto-badgers.), center, and a femur from a chimpanzee. The femoral neck region is highlighted in red, showing a longer length and a more upward orientation in Yet the femur's morphology is more telling than its size. For example, it displays a relatively long femoral neck, which connects the shaft of the thighbone to the femoral head, which then slots into the hip. A longer femoral neckIt also represents the evolutionary trade-off between strength and mobility. As humans became more modern, we gained a greater range of motion at the expense of stability and climbing power. The researchers also cite the insertion points for the gluteus muscles, which appear to be conducive to bipedalism. Additionally, the thickness of the bone's outer layer is indicative of the stresses caused by upright locomotion.would have been a sparsely forested savannah, supporting the idea that bipedalism may have emerged as woody landscapes turned to grasslands. But despite potentially ditching the trees, this ape would not have walked exactly as we do. Her femoral features suggest, meaning she may have been able to walk upright when advantageous, but also moved along the ground using all four limbs. Perhaps she assumed an upright posture to scan for predators, forage more effectively in ever-sparser environs, or carry her offspring between arboreal nesting sites. "We know that large-scale climate changes in the eastern Mediterranean and western Asia led to the periodic emergence of extensive semi-deserts and deserts 8 to 6 million years ago,""This set off several waves of dispersal of Eurasian mammals to Africa and laid the foundation for today's mammal fauna of African savannas." Various views of the femur discovered at the Azmaka excavation site in Bulgaria. Images f and g show muscular attachment sites. Images h through k include, in ordered, scans of the FM3549AZM6 femur, that of a Homo sapiens from a modern Roman burial, the small old world monkey Mesopithecus, and a chimpanzee. ancestor located in a fairly isolated place in southern Europe doesn't make much sense geographically as the ancestor of modern African apes, or particular the oldest ancestor of African hominins," Rick Potts of the Smithsonian museumOverall, this discovery is a reminder of the uncertainty, controversy, and potential mutability of our human origins. On any given day paleoanthropologists can unearth some curious fossil that ignites arguments about our ancestry.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
A Mysterious Numbers Station Is Broadcasting Through the Iran WarFirst heard as US and Israeli strikes on Iran began, the shortwave broadcast has since been traced to a US military base in Germany—but its purpose and its operator remain unclear.
Read more »
This Ancient Star In A Low-Mass Galaxy Is A Precious FindTo understand the Universe we see around us today, we have to understand its past. Some hard-to-find ancient stars, called Population II stars, preserve evidence from the ancient Universe. Astronomers finally found one.
Read more »
Giant Star's Mysterious X-Rays Finally Explained After 50 YearsThe Best in Science News and Amazing Breakthroughs
Read more »
Lord & Miller's Sci-Fi Success: Project Hail Mary & The Mysterious Solo CutDonald Glover smirking as Lando Calrissian in Solo A Star Wars Story
Read more »
Johnny Depp Spotted Shooting Mysterious Horror MovieJohnny Depp was recently spotted filming a mysterious new movie, which has just gotten some of its first details.
Read more »
Jun Ji Hyun Gets Trapped In A Building Amid A Mysterious Outbreak In “Colony”Upcoming film “Colony” has shared new stills featuring Jun Ji Hyun! Helmed by “Train to Busan” and “Peninsula” director Yeon Sang Ho, “Colony” follows the
Read more »