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The skull of a human “cousin” unearthed in South Africa could shed light on how humans evolved, according to its researchers.
The two-million-year-old skull belongs to an extinct species called Paranthropus robustus thought to be a “cousin species” of our direct ancestor – Standing man.
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Paranthropus robustus is Home erectus they are thought to have lived around the same time, but the latter survived longer.
The rare skull fragments were actually excavated in 2018, but researchers are currently looking into what they can teach us.
It was found by Australian researchers at the Drimolen archaeological site north of Johannesburg.
Dr Angeline Leece of Melbourne’s La Trobe University told the BBC: “Most of the fossil record is just a single tooth here and there, so having something like this is very rare, very lucky.”
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The skull was found very close to where fragments of a Standing man baby were discovered in 2015.
Co-researcher Jesse Martin told the BBC that working with the skull was like handling “wet cardboard”.
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He even used a straw to suck out the last few pieces of dirt.
It took 300 painstaking hours to rebuild the skull.
It’s like working non-stop for 12.5 days.
Paranthropus robustus they probably competed with our ancestors and are an example of “microevolution”.
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They had large teeth and small brains, which is the opposite of Standing man.
It is thought that they ate hard plants and bark.
They may have become extinct due to a wetter environment which reduces their food availability.
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It is thought out Standing man they ate both plants and meat and this could help them survive Paranthropus robustus.
New findings on the skull have just been published in the journal Nature, Ecology and Evolution.
A chronology of life on Earth
The history of the planet over the years …
- 4.6 billion years ago – the origin of the Earth
- 3.8 billion years ago – the first life appears on Earth
- 2.1 billion years ago – life forms made up of multiple cells evolve
- 1.5 billion years ago – eukaryotes emerge, which are cells that contain a nucleus within their membranes
- 550 million years ago – the first arthropods evolve
- 530 million years ago – the first fish appear
- 470 million years ago – the first terrestrial plants appear
- 380 million years ago, forests emerge on Earth
- 370 million years ago – the first amphibians emerge from the water on land
- 320 million years ago: the first reptiles evolve
- 230 million years ago – dinosaurs evolve
- 200 million years ago – mammals appear
- 150 million years ago – the first birds evolve
- 130 million years ago – the first flowering plants
- 100 million years ago – the first bees
- 55 million years ago – hares and rabbits appear
- 30 million years ago – the first cats evolve
- 20 million years ago, the great apes evolved
- 7 million years ago, the first human ancestors appeared
- 2 million years ago – Homo erectus appears
- 300,000 years ago, Homo sapiens evolves
- 50,000 years ago: Eurasia and Oceania were colonized
- 40,000 years ago: Neandethal extinction
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In other archeology news, the “greatest archaeological discovery of the year” will soon be announced by the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities.
Sacrificed llama mummies were excavated in Peru and are almost perfectly preserved after 500 years.
And a Viking temple dedicated to ancient Norse gods like Thor has been unearthed by archaeologists.
What do you think of the discovery of the skull? Let us know in the comments …
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