Australopithecus Afarensis

Australopithecus afarensis existed between three to four million years ago in Africa, with remains found in Tanzania, Kenya and Ethiopia. Many of its physical features present a very interesting mix of both human and ape. Fossils show that the Australopithecus afarensis had many ape like characteristics like a skull with a low-sloped forehead, long, powerful arms for tree climbing and a cone-shaped rib cage. Yet it had many anthropomorphic qualities such as being bipedal, having a short, wide pelvis, short thighbones and leaving human like footprints. These footprints show evidence of our ancestors walking upright four million years ago, showing how the toes were aligned and how the central arches of their feet helped with each step. Based …show more content…
They are born with dark brown or black hair and pale faces having a life span of about forty five years. A chimpanzee has a relatively small skull, with larger, protruding canine teeth, prominent brow ridges and its face extending far from its brain case. It also has a triangular and broad rib cage, hands with very short thumbs, and a long, narrow pelvis allowing it to tilt forward in order to be able to walk on all fours. Chimpanzees will often use their knuckles to help support them as they walk about, having longer arms than legs, however they can be bipedal. They also climb and swing through trees with their opposable thumbs and big toes, allowing them to get a secure grip on a branch. Chimps are omnivores and eat all kinds of plant like nuts and blossoms, insects and with the help of their extended, sharp teeth are able to hunt and eat meat from medium sized mammals. They are also incredibly social, living in groups anywhere from ten to one hundred or more members, many individuals switching groups from time to time and tend to construct bonds with one another and with the group functioning under a sense of community. Also mothers and their young tend to always remain together, with males sometimes leaving one group to assert dominance and earn higher ranks in

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