Forearm pronation efficiency in A.L. 288‐1 (Australopithecus afarensis) and MH2 (Australopithecus sediba): Insights into their locomotor and manipulative habits

Abstract

The pattern in Au. afarensis suggests relevant arboreal capabilities, which would include vertical climbing, although it is suggestive of poorer manipulative skills than in modern humans. The similarity between Au. sediba and Hylobatidae is difficult to interpret, but the differences between Au. sediba and Au. afarensis suggest that the capacity to rotate the forearm followed different evolutionary processes in these australopithecine species. Although functional inferences from the upper limb are complex, the observed differences between both taxa point to the existence of two distinct anatomical models.