A description of the Omo I postcranial skeleton, including newly discovered fossils

Pearson, Osbjorn M.; Royer, Danielle; Grine, Frederick E.; Fleagle, John G.

doi:10.1016/j.jhevol.2008.05.018

Cited by 77 publications

(41 citation statements)

References 32 publications

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“…Omo 1 was a partial skeleton in Member I of the Kibish Formation, Omo 2 an isolated surface find of a calvaria and Omo 3 a frontal fragment from member III [60]. More recently, an American-led expedition has located the original sites of Omo 2 and Omo 1, recovering more human material, including further parts of Omo 1, and additional fossils [61,62]. The fragmented skull from the Omo 1 assemblage has been the subject of several reconstructions but all concur in indicating a high, rounded and voluminous cranial vault with an occipital morphology of sapiens configuration, albeit with a wide frontal bone and strong but partitioned brow ridges.…”

Section: (C) East Africamentioning

confidence: 99%

The origin and evolution ofHomo sapiens

Stringer

2016

Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B

352

241

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Section: (C) East Africamentioning

confidence: 99%

The origin and evolution ofHomo sapiens

Stringer

2016

Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B

352

241

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“…However, there are traits throughout the skeleton that differentiate it from modern humans, some of which appear to be primitive [135]. Pearson et al [135] described the Omo I partial hip bone, but primarily with respect to sex and age inferences; no archaic features are mentioned, and no assessments of functional anatomy or phylogenetic implications have been made thus far (and may not be feasible given the fragmentary nature of the specimen). Whether the modern human pelvis was present at 200 kya will have to wait for more complete fossils or at least a more detailed analysis of the Omo I specimen.…”

Section: The Evolution Of the Modern Human Pelvismentioning

confidence: 99%

The evolution of the human pelvis: changing adaptations to bipedalism, obstetrics and thermoregulation

Gruss

Schmitt

2015

Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B

147

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The fossil record of the human pelvis reveals the selective priorities acting on hominin anatomy at different points in our evolutionary history, during which mechanical requirements for locomotion, childbirth and thermoregulation often conflicted. In our earliest upright ancestors, fundamental alterations of the pelvis compared with non-human primates facilitated bipedal walking. Further changes early in hominin evolution produced a platypelloid birth canal in a pelvis that was wide overall, with flaring ilia. This pelvic form was maintained over 3-4 Myr with only moderate changes in response to greater habitat diversity, changes in locomotor behaviour and increases in brain size. It was not until Homo sapiens evolved in Africa and the Middle East 200 000 years ago that the narrow anatomically modern pelvis with a more circular birth canal emerged. This major change appears to reflect selective pressures for further increases in neonatal brain size and for a narrow body shape associated with heat dissipation in warm environments. The advent of the modern birth canal, the shape and alignment of which require fetal rotation during birth, allowed the earliest members of our species to deal obstetrically with increases in encephalization while maintaining a narrow body to meet thermoregulatory demands and enhance locomotor performance.

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“…In any case, there are important markers of anatomical modernity. Postcranial bones demonstrate that Omo 1 has long slender limbs, and body mass is estimated as close to 70 kg (23).…”

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confidence: 99%

Middle and later Pleistocene hominins in Africa and Southwest Asia

Rightmire

2009

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

108

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Approximately 700,000 years ago, Homo erectus in Africa was giving way to populations with larger brains accompanied by structural adjustments to the vault, cranial base, and face. Such early Middle Pleistocene hominins were not anatomically modern. Their skulls display strong supraorbital tori above projecting faces, flattened frontals, and less parietal expansion than is the case for Homo sapiens. Postcranial remains seem also to have archaic features. Subsequently, some groups evolved advanced skeletal morphology, and by ca. 200,000 years ago, individuals more similar to recent humans are present in the African record. These fossils are associated with Middle Stone Age lithic assemblages and, in some cases, Acheulean tools. Crania from Herto in Ethiopia carry defleshing cutmarks and superficial scoring that may be indicative of mortuary practices. Despite these signs of behavioral innovation, neither the Herto hominins, nor others from Late Pleistocene sites such as Klasies River in southern Africa and Skhu l/Qafzeh in Israel, can be matched in living populations. Skulls are quite robust, and it is only after Ϸ35,000 years ago that people with more gracile, fully modern morphology make their appearance. Not surprisingly, many questions concerning this evolutionary history have been raised. Attention has centered on systematics of the mid-Pleistocene hominins, their paleobiology, and the timing of dispersals that spread H. sapiens out of Africa and across the Old World. In this report, I discuss structural changes characterizing the skulls from different time periods, possible regional differences in morphology, and the bearing of this evidence on recognizing distinct species.Homo heidelbergensis ͉ Homo sapiens ͉ human evolution ͉ skull morphology ͉ systematics

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A description of the Omo I postcranial skeleton, including newly discovered fossils

Cited by 77 publications

References 32 publications

The origin and evolution ofHomo sapiens

The origin and evolution ofHomo sapiens

The evolution of the human pelvis: changing adaptations to bipedalism, obstetrics and thermoregulation

Middle and later Pleistocene hominins in Africa and Southwest Asia

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