Humanity has always wondered about its origin, because Homo sapiens is so arranged. He needs to understand everything, comprehend and, having passed through the prism of his own worldview, give a reasonable explanation to any phenomenon or fact. Modern science points to Australopithecus as one of our distant ancestors. This topic is relevant and causes many different disputes, giving rise to new hypotheses. It is necessary to make a short digression into history and trace the evolution of Australopithecus in order to understand what is common and excellent in this group of hominids with modern man.
Adaptation to upright posture
Science provides a rather interesting characterization of Australopithecus. On the one hand, she considers them an upright biped monkey, but very highly organized. On the other hand, he calls them the primitive ancestors of man, but with a monkey head. The Australopithecus skulls found during excavations differ little from gorillas or chimpanzees that are modern for us. Based on scientific studies, it was found that the brain of Australopithecus was primitive and in its volume did not exceed 550 cm 3 . The jaws were quite large and well developed chewing muscles. The teeth looked more massive, but in their structure they already resembled the teeth of modern people.
The most heated debate in the scientific community raises questions of the upright Australopithecus. The structure of his body, determined on the basis of the remains and traces found in volcanic ash, is determined quite fully. It is possible to say with a high degree of probability that when walking the Australopithecus hip joint was not fully extended, and the feet were crossed. But his heel was well formed, there was a pronounced arch of the foot and thumb. These anatomical features of Australopithecus in the structure of the heel and foot make us similar.
Until the end, it is not known what prompted Australopithecus to go on a straight walk. Various versions are called, but, basically, they come down to the fact that they were forced to use a straight gait because they had to use their front legs more and more often, for example, to take cubs, food, etc. Another interesting hypothesis was put forward that upright walking of the “southern monkeys” is a consequence of their adaptation in the conditions of constant presence in shallow water. Shoal gave them plentiful food. In favor of this version, as an argument, for some reason, the ability of people to hold their breath spontaneously is given.
As an explanation of the issue of bipedalism, a version is proposed that bipedalism is one of the necessary elements for better adaptability to life on trees. But a more reliable version is climate change, which, according to scientists, occurred about 11 million years ago. At that time, the number of forests fell sharply and a lot of open space appeared. This condition served as the trigger mechanism that spurred the monkeys, the ancestors of Australopithecus, to develop the land.
Height and size
This is not to say that this group of hominids was large in size. Their growth did not exceed 150 cm, with a weight of 25 kg to 50 kg. But there is one interesting feature: in size, Australopithecus males were very different from females. They were heavier by almost half. This also played a role in the characteristics of behavior and reproduction. If we talk about hairline, then scientists believe that they began to lose their fur when they left the forests. Australopithecus began to lead a more active lifestyle and wool in such conditions only interfered. Sweating in a modern person is a protective mechanism of the body from overheating and, in a way, compensation for the loss of a natural “coat” by our ancestors.
It is necessary to touch on the topic of childbearing - an important characteristic of Australopithecus, which allows this species not only to survive, but also to evolve. Having switched to a less energy-consuming mode of movement - direct gait, the Australopithecus pelvis became like a human. But there was a gradual evolution. Increasingly, children with large heads began to appear. This is primarily due to the fact that living conditions have changed and required more organization and mastery of primitive tools.
The main groups of Australopithecus
Where and when did Australopithecus live? Various dating of the appearance of Australopithecus on our Earth is called. The numbers are called from 7 million years BC - up to 4 million years BC But the earliest remains of humanoid creatures are anthropologists dated to 6 million years BC. e. They stumbled upon the remains of the earliest Australopithecus in the Republic of Chad. The area of their settlement covers not only the entire center of the African continent, but reaches the northern part. Their skeletons are also found in the east. That is, they felt great in the jungle and in the shroud. The main condition for their habitat was the presence of water nearby.
Modern anthropology distinguishes three of their species, distinguishing not only by the anatomical features of Australopithecus, but also various dating.
- Australopithecus anamic. This is the earliest form of humanoid hominids. Presumably lived 6 million years ago BC
- Australopithecus africanus. It is represented by the sensational skeleton of a female Australopithecus. To a wide audience he is known as Lucy. Her death was clearly violent. Her remains date back to about 2 million years BC.
- Australopithecus sediba. This is the largest representative of these primates. The approximate time of its existence is voiced in the range from 2.5 to 1 million years BC.
Evolution and change in Australopithecus behavior
Australopithecus felt equally good, both on the ground and on the tree. As night fell, he climbed a tree for safety, even living on the ground. In addition, the trees gave him food. Therefore, he tried not to go far from them. Australopithecus lifestyle has changed. The changes affected not only his manner of moving, but also the ways to get food. The need to lead a predominantly daily lifestyle has changed their vision. The need for orientation disappeared at night, but as a compensation color vision appeared. The ability to distinguish colors made it possible to accurately search for more ripe fruits, but they were not the main food of Australopithecus. Many scientists attribute the development of the brain to the appearance of a sufficient amount of protein in its diet. Where could he get it? Perhaps hunting for smaller representatives of the animal world. Although it is believed that the remains of the feast of other larger predators were the main food of Australopithecus.
Diversity in Nutrition - The Basis for Behavioral Change
In those days, large predators from the cat family dominated: saber-toothed and lions. It was impossible for them to catch the eye, so the need to adapt did not only concern an individual, but the whole group. And this, in turn, involuntarily forced to improve the interaction between all members. Only through organized actions could compete with other scavengers, as well as be warned in case of danger. Even then, hyenas lived - the main competitor of Australopithecus on the remnants of food. It is difficult to fight them in an open battle, so it was necessary to get to the place of the feast earlier.
Diversity in the means of transportation (along the ground and trees) also gave diversity in obtaining the necessary food. This is an important point. Scientists, studying the structure of teeth, jaws, and the skull at the places of attachment of muscles, conducting isotopic analysis of bones and the ratio of trace elements in them, came to the conclusion that these hominids are omnivorous. An individual was found among Australopithecines - Sediba, who ate even the bark of trees, and this is not characteristic of any primates. The assortment of “dishes” also makes Australopithecus related to modern man, because people are also omnivorous. It is believed that this ability was laid in us at an early stage of evolution. Australopithecus did not know how to harvest food for the future, so they needed to lead a nomadic lifestyle in a constant search for food.
Tools
There is evidence that Australopithecus already knew how to use tools. These were bones, stones, sticks. Modern primates, and not only that, also use improvised means to achieve various goals: they get food, climb up, etc. This, of course, does not make them highly organized creatures. They just use what turned up in this situation. Australopithecus also did not produce tools. According to his behavior and habits, he was not much different from his relatives - monkeys. If he used stones, then for throwing or for splitting bones.
New skills are the foundation of survival in the wild
The variety of food obtained through vertical gait, the use of primitive tools and the organization of the group are far from all the skills. To answer the questions: what Australopithecus were able to do, which allowed them to adapt and continue the path of evolution, it is necessary to pay close attention to the upper limbs of these hominids. The main characteristic of Australopithecus gracile was that this distant ancestor of man, having lost most of the basic monkey features, was already a purebred erect. And this gave him some advantages. For example, he could carry a load over a short distance. Moving during daylight hours, they were more likely to avoid meeting with hyenas, which are mostly nocturnal. It is argued that thanks to upright posture, Australopithecus had an advantage in finding food over hyenas, since it covered a greater distance in a shorter period of time, but this is a rather controversial point of view.
Did Australopithecus have sign language?
To the question of interaction within the herd, in particular, whether the members of the group had at least a primitive sign language, scientists can not clearly answer. Although, observing the primates, you can at first glance notice how pronounced their facial expressions are. Yes, and sign language they are trained. Therefore, it is impossible to exclude such a possibility that the distant ancestors of man had the opportunity to transmit information not only with shouts, but also with gestures, facial expressions. The Australopithecus lifestyle was not much different from the monkey, but a developed thumb, which helps not only to successfully grab objects, a direct gait, freed hands - all these factors together and could serve as an impetus for the development of sign language in their environment. There is a high probability that such a language was owned by a Neanderthal. Australopithecus presumably as well.
There was another feature that distinguished them from all other hominids - the way of copulation. They did it face to face, peering into the facial expressions of a partner. And we must not forget about the non-sonic methods of communication within the team (gestures, poses, facial expressions). These are all also methods of transmitting information, an opportunity to express emotions and attitudes (fear, threat, submission, satisfaction, etc.).
The relationship within the herd: close dependence on each other
Perhaps the most striking characteristic of Australopithecus is the relationship with each other. If you take a flock of baboons as an example, you can see a strict hierarchy where everyone obeys the alpha male. In the case of Australopithecus, this, apparently, was not observed. But this does not mean that everyone was left to their own devices. A kind of redistribution of roles took place. The main burden of food was passed on to males. Females with cubs were too vulnerable. The baby, being born, was almost helpless, and this required additional attention and time from the mother. It took months, not months, for the cub to learn how to walk independently and somehow interact in the pack.
Lucy's famous and relatively well-preserved remains indirectly indicate close ties within the pack. It is assumed that this "family" consisted of 13 individuals. There were adults and cubs. They died all together as a result of the flood and, apparently, felt affection for each other.
Collective hunting, finding a safe place to sleep, transferring food to a safe place - all that Australopithecus knew how to do, required coherence, communication and the inevitable development of a sense of elbow. In such circumstances, it was possible to trust only members of their own pack. The rest of the world was hostile.
Cro-Magnons
These are already the early representatives of modern people, who practically do not differ from us in the structure of the bones of the skeleton and skull. According to archaeological finds, they lived in the Upper Paleolithic, that is, only about 10 thousand years ago. Between them and Australopithecus for some time there were Pithecanthropus, then Neanderthals. Each of these species of the “man” had some progressive anatomical features, which propelled them higher up the evolutionary ladder. As you can see, for the Australopithecus hominoid to become a Cro-Magnon man, several million years should have passed.
Alternative points of view of the theory of evolution
Recently, more and more often mistrust has been expressed in Darwin's theory of evolution about the origin of man from a monkey. The point here is not even that the supporters of creationism, believing that God created man in the image and likeness of clay, do not consider monkeys as their ancestors. Supporters of the theory of evolution have too often discredited themselves and their theory, doing trivial forgery, trying to pass off wishful thinking. And the appearance of new data makes us once again revise the theory of the origin of man. However, first things first.
In 1912, Charles Dawson made a “terrific” find (several bones and a skull) that “proved” the victory of the theory of evolution. True, there was one doubting dentist who claimed that the teeth of a primitive man were slightly filed with modern tools, but who would listen to such a dirty lie? And the Piltdown Man took pride of place in biology textbooks. That, it would seem, is all: finally an intermediate link has been found between the man and the monkey. But in 1953, Kenneth Oakley, Joseph Weiner and Le Gross Clark upset the public, and at the same time the House of Commons of Great Britain. The joint work of representatives of the British University, which included a geologist, anthropologist and professor of anatomy, established the flagrant fact of forgery. A fluorine test has been developed. He revealed that the human skull, monkey jaw and other bones were treated with chrompeak. This method also gave the desired “ancient look”. But even after such a sensation, one can still find the image of the “Piltdown man in textbooks.
This is not the only hoax. There were others. The American Museum of the History of Nature and its best representatives, Henry Fairfield Osborne and Harold Cook in Nebraska, discovered the molar of a half-human half-monkey. Advertising is the engine of progress. This find, about which the "best and most independent American press" trumpeted, was not only enough to paint the alleged portrait of a distant ancestor of man, but even win a trial with creationists and others who disagree with "a real breakthrough in the field of evolution and the history of the origin of man" . Then it was announced that this was a mistake. The tooth belongs to an extinct pig breed. And then the "extinct" breed was found in Paraguay. Local pigs did not even realize that for a long time they were in the center of attention of the progressive world scientific community. And such funny embarrassment can be listed further.
In the evolutionary struggle of species, Australopithecus won baboons
Often near the remains of our alleged ancestors are found skulls of defeated baboons. It turns out that Australopithecus tools were used not only for cracking nuts, but also for hunting their relatives. Here again inexplicable questions arise. Did our ancestors descend from the tree, take possession of the direct gait and better organization of their herd, on the basis of a more advanced communicative ability, but in the end they lost to the baboons, who had already reached the peak of their evolutionary development. After all, these primates are still alive, and Australopithecus exist only in the form of fossil remains. This fact also raises many questions from the category: “why and how is this possible?”. Years passed - Cro-Magnons appeared. Australopithecus was later found much later to tell its amazing story.