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| Taung 1 |
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| Makapansgat Composite Skull |
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| STS 5 |
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| STS 71 |
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The Transvaal region of South Africa was the home
to the species Australopithecus africanus, which lived 3.3 to 2.5
million years ago. This species was the first of the australopiths to be
described; Raymond Dart named the genus and species in 1925 after his discovery
of the famous Taung child.
Many features of the cranium of A. africanus are more evolved than that of earlier A. afarensis. These features include a more globular cranium and slightly higher ratio of brain size to body size. Also the teeth and face appear less primitive. For years researchers considered the evolution of early humans to pass from A. afarensis to A. africanus and lead to early Homo. However, some researchers now believe that facial features link A. africanus to the "robust" early human species of southern Africa, Paranthropus robustus. Known as anterior pillars, which are located on either side of the nose, these features are found in A. africanus and P. robustus, and not in the eastern African species. This implies that the designation of the genus Paranthropus may be incorrect. As if to confuse the issue even more, recent comparative studies of the postcranial fossils of A. afarensis and A. africanus have placed a whole new unknown into the question. Evidently, the proportion of arm to leg lengths was more ape-like in A. africanus than in A. afarensis. This confuses the phylogeny of early humans because of the discovery of the OH 62 fossil, and the post-cranial paradox it has posed. As a result, some researchers are once again pointing to A. africanus as a possible ancestor of early Homo. In all, A. africanus is an enigma to paleoanthropology. Researchers are still unsure about where A. africanus came from and which species, if any, it led to. It can safely be said that to figure out A. africanus would lead to a great clarification of our early evolutionary history. To the left are four specimens. The first is the type specimen of the species, the Taung Child. In the middle is a composite reconstruction of an adult male A. africanus composed of three individuals from the Makapansgat Limeworks in South Africa. Next is the famous "Mrs. Ples" of Sterkfontein. At the bottom is the STS 71 partial cranium. |
