Ardipithecus ramidus is a species of australopithecine from the Afar region of Early Pliocene Ethiopia 4.4 million years ago (mya). A. ramidus, unlike modern hominids, has adaptations for both walking on two legs (bipedality) and life in the trees (arboreality).
What is the significance of Ardipithecus ramidus?
ramidus because at 4.4 mya, it provides the first extensive fossil evidence that extends our understanding of the last common ancestor we shared with chimpanzees. Scientists argue that the morphology of Ar.
What made the Ardipithecus special?
This species was a facultative biped and stood upright on the ground but could move on all four limbs in trees. Features of the anatomy are extremely primitive. upper canines are shaped like diamonds, rather than the pointed shape seen in African apes, whch is a derived feature shared with Australopithecus afarensis .
What was unique about Ardipithecus ramidus and where and when did it live?
In a new study, researchers argue that soil samples found alongside Ardipithecus ramidus, a female who lived 4.4 million years ago in what is now Ethiopia, show that the creature lived in a grassy environment of relatively few trees, a type of habitat known as a savanna.
Which statement best describes some important characteristics of Ardipithecus?
Which statement best describes some important characteristics of Ardipithecus? Ardipithecus had a transitional pelvis and lived in a woodland forest environment.
What did Ardipithecus ramidus evolve from?
Evolutionary Tree Information:
It may have descended from an earlier species of Ardipithecus that has been found in the same area of Ethiopia, Ardipithecus kadabba.
What is the Ardipithecus ramidus fossil?
Ardipithecus ramidus, nicknamed in 1994 ‘Ardi’ (meaning ‘ground’ or ‘root’), lived about 4.4 million years ago during the early Pliocene. The fossil find was dated on the basis of its stratigraphic position between two volcanic strata.
When was Ardipithecus ramidus alive?
4.4 million years ago
Ardipithecus lived between 5.8 million and 4.4 million years ago, from late in the Miocene Epoch (23 million to 5.3 million years ago) to the early to middle Pliocene Epoch (5.3 million to 2.6 million years ago). The genus contains two known species, Ar. ramidus and Ar. kadabba.
Why did Ardipithecus ramidus go extinct?
Ardipithecus ramidus may have gone extinct due to the climate becoming drier, reducing its habitat and making it easier for other species to survive….
Where did the Ardipithecus ramidus live?
Ethiopia
ramidus lived in a river-margin forest in an otherwise savanna (wooded grassland) landscape at Aramis, Ethiopia. Correct interpretation of habitat of Ar. ramidus is crucial for proper assessment of causes and mechanisms of early hominin evolution, including the development of bipedalism.
Did Ardipithecus ramidus make tools?
Given its small brain size, it is not surprising that Ardipithecus ramidus is not found with stone tools. It is possible that it used simple tools though, much like chimpanzees. For example, chimpanzees use sticks to fish for termites. Unfortunately, these kinds of tools would not be preserved in the fossil record.
What was Ardipithecus ramidus skull volume?
300 to 350 cubic centimeters
The Ardipithecus ramidus skull exhibits a small endocranial capacity (300 to 350 cubic centimeters), small cranial size relative to body size, considerable midfacial projection, and a lack of modern African ape–like extreme lower facial prognathism.
What is the most striking feature of the Ardipithecus ramidus foot?
What is the most striking feature about the Ardipithecus ramidus foot? It has a divergent hallux like that of an ape.
What is the estimated age of the Ardipithecus ramidus fossil?
“Ardi” fossils from Ethiopia are 4.4 million years old. Oct. 1, 2009 — — Scientists today told the world what they know about Ardipithecus ramidus — “Ardi” for short — the oldest pre-human species yet found.
What did scientists learn by studying the foot of Ardipithecus?
The results revealed that humans evolved from an ancestor that had a foot similar to living chimpanzees and gorillas. The African ape foot is uniquely suited to life on the ground, including shorter toe bones, but also shows some adaptations to life in the trees, such as an elongated, grasping big toe.
What adaptations for bipedalism are seen in this Ardipithecus ramidus pelvis?
What adaptations for bipedalism are seen in this Ardipithecus ramidus pelvis? In the Ardipithecus ramidus has sharpened and flat out on the side to support the legs and well as they have a shorter and wide pelvis. I lived about 6 mya in eastern Africa.
What are the benefits of bipedalism?
The advantages
Bipedalism allowed hominids to free their arms completely, enabling them to make and use tools efficiently, stretch for fruit in trees and use their hands for social display and communication.
Is bipedalism unique to humans?
Humans and orangutans are both unique to a bipedal reactive adaptation when climbing on thin branches, in which they have increased hip and knee extension in relation to the diameter of the branch, which can increase an arboreal feeding range and can be attributed to a convergent evolution of bipedalism evolving in …