A million-year-old fossil that changes what we know about human hands and feet

For decades, paranthropus boisei, the first hominin that roamed eastern Africa a million years ago, was known for its large muscles and developed bite force. His diet of grass and reeds and the food found earned him the name “nutcracker man,” but what remained of his bones remained a mystery.

Now, newly discovered fossils in Kenya’s Turkana Basin are giving scientists their first up-close glimpse of this ancient land and footprints — and revealing more terrestrial and terrestrial species than anyone expected.

A million-year-old puzzle piece

Between 2019 and 2021, researchers, led by PaleoAmporopologist Carrie Mongle of Stony Brook University, discovered that Koobi FOOBI is always close. The bones, labeled as KNM-ER 101000, date to about 1.52 million years ago. They contain both hand elements and structures that were found alongside the skull and tooth remains clearly paranthropus boisei. For the first time, scientists were able to confidently identify these body parts as belonging to a single person.

Until now, debates have been raging whether this species, for a long time considered to be close relatives of the first, used or made tools. The absence of hand bones left the question in doubt. Some have hypothesized that all major hominins were tool users; Some think that paranthropus could be outside. With these letters, that doubt disappears.

A hand built for strength and skill

When scientists looked at the hand, they found an interesting combination of symptoms. The thumb was long, similar to modern humans, to allow for precise movements such as small objects. But the bones were strong and strong, like gorillas. The joint at the base of the thumb and the bones in the wrist was very loose, suggesting that the grip could create undue pressure.

“The most interesting part,” said Mongle, “is the number of paths that were similar to ours.” Measurements – long thumb, short fingers, and flexible little finger – predict the ability to hold programs well and cushion them with precision.

But the hand was not as developed as in the later species of homo. Its members raised P. Boisei may not have been able to develop the same fine tooling precision. But the physical strength was there. The structure of the hand “shows a certain strength of lubrication that can make the use of tools,” said Samar Syoda of the American Museum of Natural History.

Walking on the plains of Africa is straightforward

Fossil feet, for example, in the case of strong big toes and a highly preserved metatarsal, tell a different story – one of a different bipedal gait. The big toe was struck by coming off the ground, with the midfoot exhibiting an orderly twist that supported a powerful, compound stride. These are the characteristics of a creature adapted to walking upright on the ground, although they may be capable of some climbing.

With a well-defined arch and a compact joint, this foot was not one that lived in the woods. Instead, it means that of a hominin free in the savanna, browsing among the dots of food or bloated by Lake Edges.

Finding it also revives the paranthropus as an oafish plant that eats a little fun. Its strong hands may have had multiple uses beyond eating heavy plants. Investigators believe that they may have used rocks to open large seeds or strip bark, actions that were difficult and synchronized.

Almudena Estalrrich of Spain’s National Museum of Natural Science says that the muscular marks on the hand are “Evidence in the Bonds are very active, both in the acquisition of food and the purchase of food.” That suggests P. Boisei was more flexible than previously thought, with physical strength and willing hands.

The land shared with the first people

These fossils also confirm that paranthropus boisei and the first homo interacted more than a million years ago. In the past, footprints left at the mouth of the volcano had already revealed this. Now, KNM-ER 101000 provides concrete evidence that these two species – one is herbivorous and depends on green energy, the other – a tool – that uses and attempts meat at the same time.

Adrián Pablos of Spain’s National Centrol Centrol Centrol Centrol Centrol Centrol Centrol Centrol of the human position explains that this discovery “changed the view we had of these species and allowed us to think about them.” The discovery undermines the long-held belief that tool use or manual dexterity was a distinguishing feature of Homo from other hominins.

Fossils also provide clues to the formation of the last common ancestor of Homo and paranthropus. Hand measurements show that early honinins had large thumbs and thumbs far before their evolutionary split. It is easy to later refine these features, developing the advanced hand processes and finger systems that will be needed to make a complex tool.

For scientists, the discovery underscores how evolution did not move in a straight line from Primitive to Advanced. Instead, it was a complex network of change – a shared, dynamic alternative – existing simultaneously in time and space. “What has been taken for granted has now been documented and re-examined with new data and methods,” explains Estalrich.

Practical Research Results

Besides rewriting the literature, the discovery of KNM-ER 101000 improves our knowledge of what makes homo sapiens unique. It shows that the use of dexterity and the use of tools did not appear suddenly but gradually developed through the testing of a part of the species of many hominin species.

For evolutionary biology and anthropology, the fossil provides a rare opportunity to see how anatomy and behavior came about – how species were able to evolve an economy of movement and manipulation without having perfect technology.

Finally, it reminds us that human evolution was a group experience, one done by many hands before our own

The findings of the study are available online in the Journal Natural.

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