Australopithecus+afarensis

=__**Origins of the Skull - Maddy**__ =

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Australopithecus afarensis was found in eastern and western Africa. They existed between 3.9 to 3 million years ago. =====

than 900,000 years.
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During the 1970’s there were 2 fossil hunting teams that began uncovering evidence of ancient human ancestors in east Africa. One team which was co-led by Donald Johanson were working at Hadar in Ethiopia. The other team which was led my Mary Leakey were working at Laetoli in Tanzania. The fossils which were discovered at both these sites were very similar with their features and ages but they didn’t match the fossils of any species known at the time. A new species named Australopithecus afarensis was therefore created for them in 1978. A key fossil discovery for this specimen is one they call ‘Lucy’. Lucy is a partial skeleton that was discovered in 1974 by Donald Johanson in Hadar, Ethiopia. This female skeleton can be dated back 3.2 million years ago. Lucy was only about 110 cm tall but was a fully grown adult when she died. She could walk on two legs which made her bipedal which is a crucial link to humankind. ===== = = = = = = =__**Digital Phot of Skull with Annotations - Christina**__ = == = = = = = = =__**Main Features of the Skull - Amy **__=

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Many cranial features of A. Afarensis were quite ape-like, including a low, sloping forehead, a projecting face, and prominent brow ridges above the eyes. However, this species did not have a deep groove lying behind its brow ridge like most modern apes and the spinal cord emerged from the central part of the skull base rather than from the back. The crest was very short and located towards the rear of the skull and it is known that males had a bony bridge on top of their skull for the attachment of enormous jaw muscles. =====

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the skull. Males had a bony ridge on top of their skull for the attachment of enormous jaw muscles.
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 Analysis of their teeth, skull and shape indicates that their diet mainly consisted of plants. However, further research has been done and it suggests that they may have included meat in their diet as well. They mainly ate fruits and leaves rather than seeds and other hard plant material. The Australopithecus afarensis lived in small social groups containing a mixture of males and females, children and adults. Their small groups contained a single dominant male and a number of breeding females. They occupied a range of environments. Some populations lived in savannah or sparse woodland, others lived in dense forests beside lakes. ===== = = =__**Bibliography**__ =

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 * =====<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Australopithecus afarensis - Australian Museum. (n.d.). //Australian Museum - nature, culture, discover - Australian Museum//. Retrieved April 22, 2012, from[] =====
 * =====<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Australopithecus afarensis.(n.d.). //Smithsonian National Museum of Natural// //History//. Retrieved April 18, 2012, from [|https://humanorigins.si.edu][|/evidence/human-fossils/species/australopithecus-afarensis] =====
 * =====<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Australopithecus afarensis - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. (n.d.). //Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia//. Retrieved April 22, 2012, from [|http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australopithecus_afarensis#Physical_characteristics] =====
 * =====<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Berger., L. (n.d.). Hominid Species. //TalkOrigins Archive: Exploring the Creation/Evolution Controversy//. Retrieved May 2, 2012, from =====
 * =====<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Australopithecus afarensis (Lucy). (n.d.). //anthro4n6//. Retrieved May 2, 2012, from [] =====