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Human Evolution Notes

1) Cave Formation
- Underground caves form in dissolved dolomite below the water table
- The water table drops due to water erosion of the valley, and the cave becomes filled with air. Slightly acidic rainwater
filters through the dolomites from the surface, dissolving calcium carbonate and magnesium as it goes, and becoming
highly alkaline limewater that finally drips into the cave from the roof
- Joints in the roof open to the surface, admitting surface sediment, which forms a talus cone below the shaft. The
sediments contain animal bones, stones and plants. Entrances become choked when the cave is full. Other shafts open and
admit different deposits. The new deposits form other members, and record life from a different time period
- The sediments deposited become calcified by drip from the roof. The highly alkaline limestone solution also cements the
sand and fossils together to form breccia

2) Australopithecus africanus
- They lived between 3.5 – 2.5 million years ago
- They are often referred to as the South African missing link
- Important finds of the species are Mrs. Ples and the Taung Child
- The first specimens ever discovered was at Taung in the North West Province by Prof. Raymond Dart of Wits Medical
School in 1924
- They have features intermediate between apes and humans, namely a chimp-size small brain, bipedal, human-like teeth,
reduced canines (diet and social), somewhat parabolic dental arcade, no chin, bowl-shaped pelvis, and a divergent big toe
divergent (away from foot, prehensile for climbing)
- Other important features: they spent some time in trees, they made no tools from stone or bone, they probably
scavenged, they probably lived like chimps in groups near water sources, they probably had no complex language, they
probably lived till about 20, and they were hunted by hyenas and leopards

3) Multi-Regional Model (Regional Continuity / Candelabra hypothesis)

- This hypothesis stresses continuity in the evolution of Homo erectus into Homo sapiens in many regions of the world
simultaneously, including Africa, Europe and Asia, as far east as China
- In other words, the emergence of Homo sapiens was not restricted to any one area, but was a phenomenon that occurred
throughout the geographic range where Homo erectus lived. The simultaneous changes in different geographic regions
imply parallel evolution
- According to this model:
 Multi-regionalists argue for a gradual transition from Homo erectus to archaic Homo sapiens, to modern humans
 Local variants include Neanderthals in Europe, and Archaic Homo sapiens in Africa and Asia
 Multi-regionalists suggest that all of these fossils belong to the same species (Homo sapiens)
 Some think that all species of Homo, back to and including erectus, should be lumped into Homo sapiens
 Homo erectus evolved all across the globe at the same time into modern humans.
 Continual gene flow (breeding) is the mechanism that allowed local variants to remain part of a single species
across the world simultaneously
 Racial differences are a million or more years old, determined by the regional variant (local ancestor). So
Neanderthals gave rise to modern humans in Europe, Archaic Homo sapiens gave rise to modern humans in
Africa, etc
 There is no intrusive stone tool technology anywhere in Europe or Asia. The Acheulian tradition persists,
indicating continuous cultural and anatomical evolution
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4) Out of Africa (Eve Hypothesis / Replacement) Model

- The Out of Africa Model argues that modern humans (Homo sapiens sapiens) evolved relatively recently somewhere in
Africa
- A small population of Homo sapiens sapiens with advantageous traits (characteristics), both physical and cultural,
successfully multiplied and expanded into the territories of other populations in Africa
- No gene flow occurred between the populations. Barriers to interbreeding may have been communication and culture
- The successful population rapidly expanded and migrated into Eurasia
- It replaced all other populations, namely Homo erectus, archaic Homo sapiens and Neanderthals
- According to this model:
 Modern humans evolved from African archaic Homo sapiens, and spread out into the rest of the world
 This occurred around 200-150 000 years ago
 They gradually replaced all local populations with no (or little) interbreeding
 There is no direct link between Homo erectus and modern humans
 The species intermediate between Homo erectus and Homo sapiens are Homo antecessor and Homo
heidelbergensis
 Local erectus-like variants (Neanderthals, Archaic Homo sapiens) all evolved independently, and were all driven
to extinction by invading modern humans
 The replacement was probably not conflict-based. Modern humans out-competed the local variants for resources,
or were immune to certain viral strains
 Racial differences are very recent
 mtDNA shows that genetic variability in Africa is significantly higher than in the entire rest of the world
 High genetic variability in Africa is due to a longer time for mutations to occur, indicating that modern humans in
Africa are much older than anywhere else
 The oldest modern human fossils are found in Afar, Ethiopia, dating to 190 and 160 000 years ago. This is
followed by Klasies River Mouth in South Africa at 115 000 years

5) Important factors in early human evolution

- Bipedalism led to a reorganisation of the neurological connections within the brain. Once feet had become the sole
weight bearers for bipedal walking instead of grasping, areas of the brain previously used for foot control in grasping were
redeployed for other functions
- Upright posture changed the perception of the environment due to an increase in the distance and direction viewed.
Many monkeys stand up for a better view in tall grass
- Freeing of hands provided opportunities for carrying, throwing and multi-tasking, and increased manual dexterity for
tool making
- Many monkeys and apes display bipedally for attracting attention, asserting dominance or scaring off predators
- Large brains and bipedalism have together demanded increased parental care. Human babies are born before their brains
are fully developed, otherwise they would not fit through the birth canal. The human brain continues to grow considerably
after birth
- As a consequence, human babies are born relatively premature and are thus completely dependent upon mothers for a
prolonged period of time (K-selection)
- Parental investment is important for learned behaviour. Social skills are important to maintaining harmony in a group,
and must be learned
- Increased parental care leads to dependency on social interaction, shared responsibility and complex communication
- The human brain has 9.5 billion extra neurons over and above those needed for normal body functioning. These are for
advanced mental functions
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- Humans have large temporal, parietal and frontal lobes, showing that brain organisation are as important as brain size.
These areas control skill, memory, foresight and language, in other words, intelligence. Intelligence is not therefore due
only to larger brain size, but also increased complexity of specific areas, and the neural connections between them
- Large-brained animals require a high quality diet, nutrient and calorie-rich food. Meat provides this, so hominids
evolved an increased reliance on carnivory
- More food requires more effort and greater risk. This drives a need for resourcefulness and innovation
- Unlike widely available plant foods, meat is relatively scarce and comes in small packages that require hunting or
scavenging
- Humans developed tools and collaborative hunting and food procurement strategies
- Tool use, language and cooperative social behaviour are mutually interdependent, together promoting and maintaining a
large and intelligent brain. E.g. the basic primate hand is capable of much fine manipulation, but without a human brain, it
is incapable of producing refined tools. The more agile the hands, the more imaginative the brain, and dexterity is
favoured. Each organ provided conditions in which natural selection of one, would favour the further development of the
other
- Tool use facilitates access to more food resources and nutrients
- This requires more complex thought processes like memory, innovation, communication through language, dexterity,
fine motor control and anticipatory planning
- Spatial mental maps of the environment, and remembering the whereabouts of resources for food and tool-making make
for complex memory systems
- A highly social environment created selective pressure for more social intelligence and increased brain size. Large social
groups require group harmony and cooperation in problem solving to survive. Intelligent problem-solving is an adaptive
mechanism that was selected by a few hominid species. The ability to learn, plan and communicate ideas, reflects a level
of cognition not seen in other animals
- The complex social life of primates is proposed as a major factor accounting for large brains. Social intelligence enables
individuals to interact appropriately with one another, by interpreting the behavioural cues of others, intellectualising the
situation and responding accordingly. Intelligence solves social problems, and is thus considered more important in brain
evolution than ecological problem solving. Large social groups require large brains to remember relationships. Good
social skills depend on good memory that demands an increased brain size. The evolution of language is society-based,
not driven by ecology or technology. Speech evolved as social glue
- Individuals compete against one another to secure social advantages by a complicated process of alliances, often
involving trickery and the manipulation of friends and enemies. These higher mental functions are called ‘Machiavellian
intelligence’. Dominance and competitive behaviour may have secured more mates, thus a selective pressure for these
traits