<i>Homo erectus</i>
            Calvarium from the Pleistocene of Java

Baba, Hisao; Aziz, Fachroel; Kaifu, Yousuke; Suwa, Gen; Kono, Reiko T.; Jacob, Teuku

doi:10.1126/science.1081676

Cited by 92 publications

(71 citation statements)

References 26 publications

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“…The lateral shift of the upper pharyngeal muscle attachments from the tympanic and petrous (in the apes) to the sphenoid (in modern humans) (18) may be related to this secondary expansion in basicranial breadth. Expansion of the middle cranial fossa and the lateral part of the anterior cranial fossa in Homo apparently postdated midsagittal flexion of the base, affecting both endocranial and facial structure (25,27). This pattern of change is consistent with the hypothesis of developmental modularity in the evolutionary emergence of human cranial base form (27).…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 75%

“…Within and among species of Australopithecus and early Homo there is considerable variation in the bony morphology of the nuchal and glenoid regions, including differences between "robust" and "nonrobust" species of Australopithecus (3, 5). However, this variation appears to be unlinked to the morphology of the central basicranium, the derived configuration of which, as described here, was apparently fixed early in the clade's evolutionary history (3,6,10,(24)(25)(26).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Ardipithecus ramidus and the evolution of the human cranial base

Kimbel

Suwa

Asfaw

et al. 2014

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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The early Pliocene African hominoid Ardipithecus ramidus was diagnosed as a having a unique phylogenetic relationship with the Australopithecus + Homo clade based on nonhoning canine teeth, a foreshortened cranial base, and postcranial characters related to facultative bipedality. However, pedal and pelvic traits indicating substantial arboreality have raised arguments that this taxon may instead be an example of parallel evolution of human-like traits among apes around the time of the chimpanzee-human split. Here we investigated the basicranial morphology of Ar. ramidus for additional clues to its phylogenetic position with reference to African apes, humans, and Australopithecus. Besides a relatively anterior foramen magnum, humans differ from apes in the lateral shift of the carotid foramina, mediolateral abbreviation of the lateral tympanic, and a shortened, trapezoidal basioccipital element. These traits reflect a relative broadening of the central basicranium, a derived condition associated with changes in tympanic shape and the extent of its contact with the petrous. Ar. ramidus shares with Australopithecus each of these human-like modifications. We used the preserved morphology of ARA-VP 1/500 to estimate the missing basicranial length, drawing on consistent proportional relationships in apes and humans. Ar. ramidus is confirmed to have a relatively short basicranium, as in Australopithecus and Homo. Reorganization of the central cranial base is among the earliest morphological markers of the Ardipithecus + Australopithecus + Homo clade.A s the confluence of the neural, locomotor, and masticatory systems, the cranial base has been the site of profound structural change in human evolution. The modern human basicranium differs from that of our closest living relatives, the great apes, in numerous aspects of shape and morphological detail (1-4). In humans, the foramen magnum and occipital condyles are more anteriorly located, the midline basicranial axis is relatively short anteroposteriorly and strongly "flexed" internally, and the bilateral structures marking vascular and neural pathways through the central part of the base are more widely separated. This organization alters the relationships between the petrous and tympanic parts of the temporal bone. These phylogenetically derived features are already seen in the earliest known skulls of Australopithecus, ca. 3.0-3.4 Ma (5, 6).The cranium of Ardipithecus ramidus, an early Pliocene (4.4 Ma) hominoid from Ethiopia, was shown to have a relatively anterior foramen magnum on a short basicranium, corroborating evidence of nonhoning canine teeth and terrestrial bipedality for phylogenetic attribution of this taxon. These sets of derived characters are shared uniquely with the Australopithecus + Homo clade (7-10). At the same time, pelvic and pedal characters indicate that Ar. ramidus also retained considerable arboreal capabilities (11)(12)(13)(14). Despite the evidence for a unique phylogenetic relationship with the Australopithecus + Homo clade, it has been a...

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Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 75%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ardipithecus ramidus and the evolution of the human cranial base

Kimbel

Suwa

Asfaw

et al. 2014

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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“…Apart from the above unanswered questions regarding the processes leading to the observed reduction, the marked degree of crown size reduction documented here for late Early Pleistocene H. erectus of Java is suggestive in terms of elucidating modern human origins in Australasia (Brown, 1992b;Hawks et al, 2000;Baba et al, 2003). Recent studies of cranial morphology strongly suggest that Javanese H. erectus during and after the late Early Pleistocene formed a continuously evolving population lineage that was effectively independent of the H. erectus populations of northern China (Antón, 2002;Baba et al, 2003;Durband et al, 2005).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Advanced dental reduction in Javanese Homo erectus

Kaifu

2006

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The postcanine tooth crowns of late Early Pleistocene Homo erectus from Sangiran, Java, have been considered to be significantly smaller than those of older H. erectus remains of the same region. In this study, the degree of dental reduction in the former was examined by comparing their postcanine crown size with that of various regional groups of recent H. sapiens. The results show that overall crown size and degree of posterior molar reduction of Javanese H. erectus of the late Early Pleistocene was within the range of variation of recent H. sapiens. The position of this H. erectus group in the general trend of dental reduction in Early to Middle Pleistocene Asian archaic Homo is discussed. Implications for the phylogenetic discontinuity hypothesis between H. erectus and H. sapiens in Australasia are presented. In contrast to their reduced crown size, the Javanese H. erectus remains exhibit robust root systems, presumably a primitive retention. This observation indicates that reduction in crown size preceded reduction of the roots during evolution of Homo, at least in the Sunda region.

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“…In particular, recent analyses of 2D linear dimensions and non-metric features supported a linear transition from Sangiran/Trinil through Sambungmacan/Ngawi and onto Ngandong (Baba et al, 2003;Kaifu et al, 2006Kaifu et al, , 2008Kaifu et al, , 2015, a view also embraced by Wolpoff (1999). This conclusion was based on observations that geochronologically younger Sangiran fossils were more similar to later Indonesian fossils than were older ones, and that both Ngawi and the three Sambungmacan specimens displayed intermediate morphologies between Sangiran/Trinil and Ngandong.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 89%

“…Santa Luca's (1980) in-depth analysis of the Ngandong fossils further solidified this sample as part of the broader H. erectus type. Additional fossil discoveries have occurred in both the earlier time frame, including additional Sangiran dome localities (Sartono and Tyler, 1993;Widianto et al, 1994;Widianto and Grimaud-Herve, 2000;Grimaud-Hervé et al, 2005;Zaim et al, 2011), and the later time frame, such as the three calvaria from Sambungmacan Márquez et al, 2001;Baba et al, 2003) and the one from Ngawi (Sartono, 1991). Sambungmacan and Ngawi are considered to have particular affinities with Ngandong.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%