The Versatility of Human Locomotion

Devine, John

doi:10.1525/aa.1985.87.3.02a00030

Cited by 62 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 43 publications

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“…Ethnographic accounts qualitatively describe the use of climbing in various modern human populations during hunting and foraging (see Devine [1985] for a review). In addition, the grasping of objects (e.g., tools) with flexed digits could lead the fingers to experience a similar strain regime to that of arboreal locomotor behaviors.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The correspondence between proximal phalanx morphology and locomotion: Implications for inferring the locomotor behavior of fossil catarrhines

Rein

2011

American J Phys Anthropol

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Phalanges are considered to be highly informative in the reconstruction of extinct primate locomotor behavior since these skeletal elements directly interact with the substrate during locomotion. Variation in shaft curvature and relative phalangeal length has been linked to differences in the degree of suspension and overall arboreal locomotor activities. Building on previous work, this study investigated these two skeletal characters in a comparative context to analyze function, while taking evolutionary relationships into account. This study examined the correspondence between proportions of suspension and overall substrate usage observed in 17 extant taxa and included angle of curvature and relative phalangeal length. Predictive models based on these traits are reported. Published proportions of different locomotor behaviors were regressed against each phalangeal measurement and a size proxy. The relationship between each behavior and skeletal trait was investigated using ordinary least-squares, phylogenetic generalized least-squares (pGLS), and two pGLS transformation methods to determine the model of best-fit. Phalangeal curvature and relative length had significant positive relationships with both suspension and overall arboreal locomotion. Cross-validation analyses demonstrated that relative length and curvature provide accurate predictions of relative suspensory behavior and substrate usage in a range of extant species when used together in predictive models. These regression equations provide a refined method to assess the amount of suspensory and overall arboreal locomotion characterizing species in the catarrhine fossil record.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The correspondence between proximal phalanx morphology and locomotion: Implications for inferring the locomotor behavior of fossil catarrhines

Rein

2011

American J Phys Anthropol

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“…Nevertheless, form-function inferences for hominins demand consideration of the locomotor diversity of both extant apes and modern humans. In comparison with chimpanzees, the diversity of modern human locomotion has received little attention (22,23). For example, modern humans who climb trees routinely remain unstudied, despite their relevance for inferring potential anatomical constraints on hominin arboreality.…”

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Tree climbing and human evolution

Venkataraman¹,

Kraft²,

Dominy

2012

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

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Paleoanthropologists have long argued-often contentiouslyabout the climbing abilities of early hominins and whether a foot adapted to terrestrial bipedalism constrained regular access to trees. However, some modern humans climb tall trees routinely in pursuit of honey, fruit, and game, often without the aid of tools or support systems. Mortality and morbidity associated with facultative arboreality is expected to favor behaviors and anatomies that facilitate safe and efficient climbing. Here we show that Twa hunter-gatherers use extraordinary ankle dorsiflexion (>45°) during climbing, similar to the degree observed in wild chimpanzees. Although we did not detect a skeletal signature of dorsiflexion in museum specimens of climbing hunter-gatherers from the Ituri forest, we did find that climbing by the Twa is associated with longer fibers in the gastrocnemius muscle relative to those of neighboring, nonclimbing agriculturalists. This result suggests that a more excursive calf muscle facilitates climbing with a bipedally adapted ankle and foot by positioning the climber closer to the tree, and it might be among the mechanisms that allow hunter-gatherers to access the canopy safely. Given that we did not find a skeletal correlate for this observed behavior, our results imply that derived aspects of the hominin ankle associated with bipedalism remain compatible with vertical climbing and arboreal resource acquisition. Our findings challenge the persistent arboreal-terrestrial dichotomy that has informed behavioral reconstructions of fossil hominins and highlight the value of using modern humans as models for inferring the limits of hominin arboreality.Australopithecus | human pygmy phenotype | phenotypic plasticity

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“…In general, rainforest hunter-gatherers adopt foraging strategies that reflect targeted consumption of foods that provide nutritional and energetic rewards within carbohydrate-impoverished rainforest environments. Acquiring these foods necessitates significant amounts of climbing behavior and arboreal foraging (Bailey 1991;Endicott and Endicott 2008;Kraft et al in press), which poses a stark contrast to the uniform locomotor behavior of industrialized populations (Devine 1985).…”

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confidence: 99%

“…Although humans are clearly adapted for terrestrial bipedal locomotion, the documentation of human tree climbing complicates the classical perception of humans as committed terrestrial bipeds who are incompetent in trees (Latimer 1991;Latimer and Lovejoy 1990) and instead points to a more diverse locomotor repertoire (Devine 1985;Watanabe 1971). Climbing populations include both Philippine and Malaysian negritos in addition to African pygmies.…”

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confidence: 99%

Phenotypic Plasticity of Climbing-Related Traits in the Ankle Joint of Great Apes and Rainforest Hunter-Gatherers

et al. 2013

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Phenotypic Plasticity of Climbing-Related Traits in the Ankle Joint of Great Apes and Rainforest Hunter-Gatherers AbstractThe "negrito" and African "pygmy" phenotypes are predominately exhibited by hunter-gatherers living in rainforest habitats. Foraging within such habitats is associated with a unique set of locomotor behaviors, most notably habitual vertical climbing during the pursuit of honey, fruit, and game. When performed frequently, this behavior is expected to correlate with developmentally plastic skeletal morphologies that respond to mechanical loading. Using six measurements in the distal tibia and talus that discriminate nonhuman primates by vertical climbing frequency, we tested the prediction that intraspecific variation in this behavior is reflected in the morphology of the ankle joint of habitually climbing human populations. First, to explore the plasticity of climbing-linked morphologies, we made comparisons between chimpanzees, gorillas, and orangutans from wild and captive settings. The analysis revealed significant differences in two climbing-linked traits (anterior expansion of the articular surface of the distal tibia and increased degree of talar wedging), indicating that these traits are sensitive to climbing behavior. However, our analyses did not reveal any signatures of climbing behavior in the ankles of habitually climbing hunter-gatherers. These results suggest that the detection of finegrained differences in human locomotor behaviors at the ankle joint, particularly those associated with arboreality, may be obscured by the functional demands of terrestrial bipedalism. Accordingly, it may be difficult to use population-level characteristics of ankle morphology to make inferences about the climbing behavior of hominins in the fossil record, even when facultative arborealism is associated with key fitness benefits. Abstract The "negrito" and African "pygmy" phenotypes are predominately exhibited by hunter-gatherers living in rainforest habitats. Foraging within such habitats is associated with a unique set of locomotor behaviors, most notably habitual vertical climbing during the pursuit of honey, fruit, and game. When performed frequently, this behavior is expected to correlate with developmentally plastic skeletal morphologies that respond to mechanical loading. Using six measurements in the distal tibia and talus that discriminate nonhuman primates by vertical climbing frequency, we tested the prediction that intraspecific variation in this behavior is reflected in the morphology of the ankle joint of habitually climbing human populations. First, to explore the plasticity of climbing-linked morphologies, we made comparisons between chimpanzees, gorillas, and orangutans from wild and captive settings. The analysis revealed significant differences in two climbing-linked traits (anterior expansion of the articular surface of the distal tibia and increased degree of talar wedging), indicating that these traits are sensitive to climbing behavior. However, our analyses did not reveal an...

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The Versatility of Human Locomotion

Cited by 62 publications

References 43 publications

The correspondence between proximal phalanx morphology and locomotion: Implications for inferring the locomotor behavior of fossil catarrhines

The correspondence between proximal phalanx morphology and locomotion: Implications for inferring the locomotor behavior of fossil catarrhines

Tree climbing and human evolution

Phenotypic Plasticity of Climbing-Related Traits in the Ankle Joint of Great Apes and Rainforest Hunter-Gatherers

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