erectus was the direct ancestor of later species, including Homo sapiens. Louis Leakey argued energetically that H. erectus populations, particularly per Africa, overlap durante time with more advanced Homo sapiens and therefore cannot be ancestral sicuro the latter. Some support for Leakey’s point of view has che razza di from analysis of anatomic characteristics exhibited by the fossils. By emphasizing verso distinction between “primitive” and “derived” traits durante the reconstruction of relationships between species, several paleontologists have attempted sicuro spettacolo that H. erectus does not make a suitable morphological ancestor for Homo sapiens. Because the braincase is long, low, and thick-walled and presents per strong browridge, they claim that H. erectus shows derived (or specialized) characteristics not shared with more modern humans. At the same time, it is noted, Homo sapiens does share some features, including per rounded, lightly built cranium, with earlier hominins such as H. habilis. For these reasons, some paleontologists (including Leakey) consider the more slender, or “esile,” H. habilis and H. rudolfensis to be more closely related sicuro Homo sapiens than is H. erectus. These findings are not widely accepted, however. Instead, studies of size con human evolution indicate that representatives of Homo can be grouped into per reasonable ancestor-to-descendant sequence showing increases mediante body size. Despite having verso heavier, more flattened braincase, H. erectus, most particularly the African representatives of the species sometimes called H. ergaster, is not out of place durante this sequence.
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