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9.1: Australopithecine Locomotion

  • Page ID
    138540
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    The change in the ribcage from funnel-shaped to barrel-shaped in 3 million years of evolution. Reassembly of the fossil skeleton (black) of &quot;Lucy&quot; (Australopithecus afarensis) compared with the skeleton of a modern human female. The upper thorax is funnel-shaped with narrow shoulders, like modern-day chimpanzees (Figure 12). The blades of the ilia have turned in providing hip mechanics appropriate for erect walking. Compared with the modern adult human female, &quot;Lucy&quot; was much smaller with the relative brain size of a chimpanzee, chimpanzee-shaped thorax, a broad pelvis from iliac flaring and widening of sacral alae (possibly related to gut size), and totally bipedal (Diagram modified from [269] and Burwell et al [149]).
    “Lucy” skeleton, Au. afarensis F11: The change in the ribcage from funnel-shaped to barrel-shaped in 3 million years of evolution by Centre for Spinal Studies and Surgery, Nottingham University Hospitals Trust, Queen's Medical Centre Campus, Nottingham, UK. is licensed as CC BY 2.0.
    • Format: In-person or online
    • Author: Kristen A. Broehl
    • Time needed: 20-30 minutes

    Supplies Needed

    • Casts and/or images (see Supplemental Images) of the following from an anatomically modern human, modern ape, and Australopithecus afarensis:
      • Cranium
      • Innominate
      • Sacrum
      • Hand phalanx
      • Scapula
      • Articulated foot (Laetoli Footprints for Au. afarensis)
      • Full articulated skeleton
    • Colored pencils, pens, or crayons (or ability to color on computer)
    • Student worksheet

    Readings

    • Warren, Kerryn et al. 2019. Chapter 9: Early Hominins. Explorations.

    Introduction

    For this activity, students compare casts and/or photos of Au. afarensis to modern humans and apes. Students decide whether each individual trait is more similar to the bipedal human or quadrupedal/brachiating ape and then check the appropriate box and circle the relevant description. Next, students map the traits on an image of Au. afarensis, with color-coding by type of locomotion, to interpret the locomotive behavior of australopithecines.

    Steps

    • Provide students with the casts and images.
    • Review or define the relevant skeletal features and other information they may need when making comparisons (see Tips and Suggestions).
    • Students can work in groups or independently.
    • Review the instructions and have students complete the worksheet.

    Review Questions

    1. Which traits associated with bipedalism did you find on the skeleton of Australopithecus afarensis?
    2. How does the study of modern humans and apes help anthropologists interpret the behavior of fossil species?
    3. Where on the skeleton did Australopithecus afarensis show traits consistent with bipedal and with quadrupedal locomotion? What does this reveal about australopithecine locomotion?
    4. How does Australopithecus afarensis demonstrate mosaic evolution?

    Adapting for Online Learning

    If this is an in-person lab, rank how adaptable to online learning it would be (mark in bold): Easy to adapt.

    Online classes would use the comparative photos (see Supplemental Images) rather than casts. For Part II (mapping traits), students could print, color, and then scan their completed worksheet or just color on the computer.

    Tips and Suggestions

    1. Most of the features are available from the casts of disarticulated Lucy.
    2. I recommend using the images of the scapula/glenoid fossa for both in-person and online classes because the fragment of scapula from Lucy is difficult for students to orient for comparisons.
    3. When using casts to compare curvature of the hand phalanges, it is easiest to place the proximal ends flat on a table (see Supplemental Images).

    References

    1. Warren, Kerryn, Lindsay Hunter, Navashni Naidoo, Silindokuhle Mavuso, Kimberleigh Tommy, Rosa Moll, and Nomawethu Hlazo. 2019. “Chapter 9: Early Hominins.” In Explorations: An Open Invitation to Biological Anthropology, edited by Beth Shook, Katie Nelson, Kelsie Aguilera, and Lara Braff. Arlington, VA: American Anthropological Association. http://explorations.americananthro.org/

    This page titled 9.1: Australopithecine Locomotion is shared under a CC BY-NC 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Kristen Broehl via source content that was edited to the style and standards of the LibreTexts platform.