The Early Man: Apes to Homo Sapien Sapiens

Apes to Homo Sapien Sapiens

Between 40 and 25 million years ago, the first apes appeared on earth. The first man (Austropithecus) appeared around 4.5 million years ago.
Man passed through different stages of evolution as described;

From Apes to Modern Man

1. Aegyptopithecus – An Early African Monkey

• Aegyptopithecus was reconstructed from a monkey like skull found at Fayum Depression in Egypt.
• He forms earliest evidence of probable man’s ancestors.
• Its Teeth were those of a herbivore
• It had a Small, about 4kg and was named Egyptian ape.
• It was highly adapted to forest life.
• Had stereoscopic vision.
• It could jump skilfully from one tree to other using hands.
• It dated 33 million years

2. Dryopithecus Africanus (Proconsul)

• Its Remains were found at Rusinga Island within Lake Victoria by Mary and Louis Leakey in 1948.
• Its Skull appearance was more close to modern man than to Aegyptopithecus.
• He had a quadrupedal movement like a chimpanzee.
• He had a Smooth forehead.
• He had long teeth like other animals. The shape of his teeth and jaws indicated that He ate fruits.
• It is his remains that strengthen the belief that East Africa was the first homeland of mankind.

3. Kenyapithecus (Ramapithecus)

• He is believed to have appeared between 15 and 12 million years ago
• First remains found Fort Ternan in Kericho District, Kenya, in 1961 by Dr. Louis Leakey and Mary. Other fossils found at Samburu Hills, near Lake Baringo as well as in the Lake Turkana basin.
• The equivalent species found in the Siwalikis Hills in northern India near New Delhi was named Ramapithecus
• He had small canines and could occasionally walk on twos without falling.
• The creature was small and weighed 36kg with bigger brains than earlier hominids.

4. Australopithecus (southern ape)

• By 4-2m years ago a series of species known as australopithecines begin to appear. Perhaps it was the earliest homid closer to modern man.
• The pelvis and leg were similar to that of modern humans.
• They were bipedal and this was important in defence, grasp of objects and vision of an impending danger from a distance.
• His Brain size was smaller than that of a human but larger than gorilla’s.
• He was one of the most hairy hominid that ever existed.
• He was Short but strong with a low forehead. Had large teeth and skulls
• His remains were first discovered at Taung in Botswana by Raymond Dart in 1924.
• The broken up skull found in East Africa at Olduvai Gorge in 1959 by Mary Leakey, was called Zinjanthropus – ‘Nut-Cracker man ‘since it had big jaws that suggest it kept on chewing.
• Other fossils found in South Africa, Omo River Valley, Laetoli in Tanzania near Lakes Turkana and Baringo in Kenya and Lake Natron in Tanzania
• Four types of Australopithecines that have been identified
  1. Australopithecus Afarensis
  2. Australopithecus Anamensis
  3. Australopithecus africanus
  4. Australopithecus Robustus

Australopithecus Afarensis

• He is aged between 4.2 and 3.9 million years ago and is believed to be one of the oldest
• Evidence of his existence is obtained from the Reconstruction of Material consisting of 9 fossils from Kanapoi in Kenya and 12 fossils from Allia Bay in Kenya found by Dr. Meave Leakey, Dr. Allan Walker and the four fossil hunters (Kamoya Kimeu, Wambua Mangao, Nzube Mutiwa and Samuel Ngui.)
• The fossil remains (comprising a lower jaw) were named A. Anamensis in August 1995 in a leading British Scientific journal.

Australopithecus Anamensis

• He had relatively large canines.
• The homid was aged between 3.9 and 3.0 million years ago. Its Name is derived from Afar Depression in Ethiopia.
• He Had Apelike face and human-like teeth. He was small in stature and Bipedal, but Walked bent over, not fully upright.
• They had very small brains -Brain capacity from 375 to 500 cc – (Its Brain was the size of an orange.)
• They had a bony ridge over the eyes, a low forehead, a flat nose, and also they had no chin.
• Remains found at Laetoli in Tanzania and Tugen Hills in Baringo District.

Australopithecus Africanus (A. Gracilis)

• Australopithecus Africanus existed between 3 and 2.5 million years ago.
• Australopithecus Africanus was slenderly built, or Gracile (Gracile means slender) with a height of 1.5m.
• Was significantly more like modern humans than A. Afarensis, with a larger brain and more humanoid facial features.
• Had large teeth, jaws and skull
• A. africanus has been found at only four sites in southern Africa — Taung (1924),
• Sterkfontein (1935), Makapansgat (1948) and Gladysvale (1992).

Australopithecus Africanus (A. Gracilis)

• He Lived between 1½ – 2 million years ago in South Africa.
• He is the biggest and most recent Australopithecine. – weight 68kg. He had more robust skull, jaws, and teeth.
• He ate fruits, nuts and raw tubers- was apparently a vegetarian.
• His Remains were found primarily in cave deposits at Swartkrans and Kromdraai in South Africa.
• His Average brain size was about 530 cc
• The East African A.Robustus was named A. Boisei

4. Homo Habilis

• Also known as “Handy Man” or “man with ability”.
• He is the earliest known species of the genus Homo; that is, the first human species.
• He lived 2.5 -1.5 million years ago
• He was the First Homo specie to create and use stone tools for hunting and daily life. Homo habilis depicted the ability to make better tools than his predecessors. That is why he was referred to as man with ability.
• His Brain size was 500 -800 cc;-the Brain shape is more humanlike.
• He was capable of rudimentary speech.
• He was about 127 cm (5’0″) tall, and about 45 kg (100 lb) in weight, although females may have been smaller
• His fossils were found in the Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania in 1964 by Dr. J. Leakey.
• His Remains were also found at Hadar and Omo River Valley in Ethiopia and Kobi Fora along L. Turkana by Benerd Ngeneo in 1972.

6. Homo Erectus

• Also known as upright man
• He was BIPEDAL- standing about 4-5 feet tall with a larger brain (700-1250cc). He lived between 2 million and 200,000 years ago.
• He was clever as illustrated by his ability to make Acheulian tools such as the hand axe which was used as an axe, knife or even as a scraper. He was the First hominid to invent and use fire.
• Their skeletons were larger and showed that they were quite heavily muscled
• They were omnivorous like many other early hominids.
• Only had hair on their head and back like are men that we have today
• Remains found in Hardar, Ethiopia where the skeleton of a female ‘Lucy’ were found.
• Other fossils were found near Nariokotone River on the north western shores of Lake Turkana by Kamoya Kimeu in 1984.
• Also at Olorgesaillie near Magadi, Isimila near Iringa in TZ and Tenerife in Algeria.
• The most famous Homo Erectus fossil was found in a cave in Zhoukoudian, China and became known as Peking Man/Java man

7. Homo Sapiens

• Their Main difference with their hominid ancestors is their extreme intelligence–they were the smartest hominid that ever lived with a Brain capacity of 1000-1800cc
• They lived between 200,000 and 150,000 years ago
• They improved their way of life by making a variety of flint, bone, wood and stone tools (Microliths)
• They hunted, gathered and fished. Later on, they domesticated plants and animals
• Their Remains were found at Eliye Springs, Kanjera and Kanam in Kenya, Bodo and Omo River Valley in Ethiopia and Ngaloba in Tanzania.
• Three sub-species of Homo sapiens existed;
  • Rhodesian man
  • Neanderthals
  • Homo Sapiens Cro-Magnon

Rhodesian Man

• The sub-species Was discovered in Zambia, hence the name Rhodesian man
• He had straight legs and walked with long strides.
• Rhodesian man’s Brains and skull were very similar to those of modern man

Neanderthals

• His Remains were found in Neander valley, Germany (1856). They Lived in caves and valleys
• He was 5 feet and 5 inches tall-much stronger, heavily built and more aggressive too.
• He Had very thick eyebrow ridges like the other hominids
• He Made clothes from animal skins. They would scrape animal fat so they can use the skin as clothing.
• They were probably the First humans to bury their dead. He was most likely the most intelligent hominid other than modern humans.
• He was a nomad, gathering and hunting deer, wild pigs and wild sheep. Their weapons were used to impale animals; therefore, to kill them, they had to approach the animal and get very close. This was dangerous and probably caused injuries and even fatalities.
• Communication was key in hunting because they had to work as a team. They had the ability to use complex speech; however, their sentences were probably basic. Instead of painting on cave walls they painted their faces.
• Other remains were found in Asia, France, Belgium, Gibraltar, Italy and former Yugoslavia.
• They became extinct about 30,000 years ago

Homo Sapiens Cro-Magnon

• He was almost identical to modern humans although quite muscular and taller.
• Had long, low skull and a wide face, a sharp, rising forehead, bushy eyebrows and prominent chins
• They had a big brain capacity and had very complex thinking
• He was hunter-gatherer, painter and lived in caves
• He knew how to make clothes
• His Fossil remains were found in Western Europe. Their skeletons still remain in France today
• They became extinct around 10,000 years ago

8. Homo Sapiens Sapiens

• Homo sapiens sapiens are modern day humans. They evolved about 50,000 years ago.
• They have big brains and a more advanced faculty for curiosity and intelligence
• They have a large brain capacity. They do not just think, they plan ahead, make accurate forecasts, and study the star and the galaxies
• They have made inventions that have made life more comfortable.
• They are Around 5 feet 6 inches tall and Walk fully upright
• They have Minimal hair on our bodies (replaced by clothing)