Human Evolution

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Human Evolution
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Primates

• The order Primates includes humans, apes,
  monkeys, and prosimians.
• Some taxonomic splitters classify up to 350
  species, while lumpers include as few as 190. 
• Most estimates are in the range of 230-270.

Natural Range of Non-Human Primates
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Primates
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Primate Characteristics

• Grasping limbs, with long fingers and separated
  opposable thumb

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Primate Characteristics

• Mobile arms, with shoulder joints allowing
  movement in three planes

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Primate Characteristics

• Stereoscopic vision, with forward facing eyes
  giving an overlapping field of view

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Primate Characteristics

• Skull and hips modified for upright posture

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Taxonomic Classification of Humans

• Kingdom Animalia
• Phylum Chordata
• Class Mammalia
• Order Primates
• Family Hominidae
• Genus Homo
• Species sapiens

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Family Hominidae

• Includes the extant genera
• Homo humans
• Pan chimpanzees
• Gorilla gorillas
• Pongo - orangutans

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Fossil Evidence of Extinct Hominids

• Lucy Australopithecus afarensis
• 40 complete skeleton
• Discovered in1974in Ethiopias Rift Valley
• Estimated 3.2 million years old, and 3.6 feet
  tall

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Fossil Evidence of Extinct Hominids

• Laetoli Footprints
• Estimated Date 3.6 million years ago
• Prints of adult and child walking through
  volcanic ash
• Found in Great Rift Valley

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The Fossil Evidence of Hominid Evolution is
Limited
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Transitional Fossils In Hominid Evolution
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Trends in Hominid Evolution

• Increasing brain size in relation to body size

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Hominid Diets and Brain Size

• Early hominid skulls display large powerful jaws,
  indicating a vegetarian diet.
• Over time, fossils show an increase in brain
  size, correlating to discovery of tools.

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Hominid Diets and Brain Size

• Meat contains more energy, allowing increased
  growth of brain size
• Greater intelligence would make for a significant
  hunting advantage

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Trends in Hominid Evolution

• Increasing adaptation to bipedalism

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Cultural Evolution

• Does not involve changes in allele frequencies in
  gene pools
• Can occur within a individuals lifetime
• Includes language, tool making skills, hunting
  techniques, agriculture, religion, art, etc.
• Currently our cultural evolution is far outpacing
  genetic evolution