New adult Homo erectus fossil found in South Africa
La Trobe archaeologists described 18 new hominin fossils from the Drimolen Main Quarry in South Africa, including an adult Homo erectus skull fragment dated to 2 million years ago.
Fossil confirms earlier species appearance
The newly identified skull fragment shows that Homo erectus appeared in southern Africa 200,000 years earlier than previously thought. This adult fossil is older than other known specimens from Dmanisi in Georgia, which date to 1.8 million years ago. The discovery confirms the species first emerged in this region two million years ago.
Other fossils show evolutionary change
The collection also includes representatives of P. robustus that were undergoing microevolutionary change due to climatic pressures. Many of these specimens had remained unpublished since excavation began in 1992 and continued through 2019. Scientists from South Africa and the United States collaborated on describing these remains.
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