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9.7: Kenyanthropus platyops

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    62343
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    A surprisingly “flat-faced” hominin came to light with Meave Leakey’s discovery and naming of Kenyanthropus platyops (“flat-faced human from Kenya”) in 1999. The degree of orthognathism was surprising for such an early hominin. While possessing primitive ape-like molars (elongated mesiodistally, i.e. front to back) and sharing similarities with Au. anamensisandafarensis, the lower face of K. platyops is surprisingly (and possibly mistakenly) orthognathic for its early date. The cranial capacity of K. platyops  is also suspect due to the reconstruction but if accurate, it was fairly high relative to other species of the time, at 400–500 cc.

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    9.7: Kenyanthropus platyops is shared under a not declared license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by LibreTexts.

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