Understanding Human Evolution

This new edition provides a comprehensive overview to the field of paleontologythe study of human evolution by analyzing fossil remains. It includes the latest fossil finds, and it presents current controversies in an even-handed manner.The authors examine trends in human evolution, fossils, fossilization, and dating methods, determining evolutionary relationships, reconstructing ancient human behavior and social organizations, basal anthropoids, the evolution of monkeys and the transition to apes, the early Hominins, the Hominin divergence, the spread of Homobeyond Africa, transition to Archaic Homo sapiens,Neandertals and their immediate predecessors and the appearance of Homo sapiens sapiens.For those interested in a balanced paleoanthropology sourcebook.

Jeffrey K. McKee, Ohio State University
Frank E. Poirier, Emeritus, Ohio State University
W. Scott McGraw, Ohio State University

Preface

xi

CHAPTER ONE TRENDS IN HUMAN EVOLUTION

1

(28)

Overview

2

(3)

Trend 1: The Evolution of Bipedalism

5

(8)

Origins of Bipedalism

9

(4)

Trend 2: Effective Exploitation of the Terrestrial Habitat

13

(4)

Language

15

(2)

Trend 3: Increasing Brain Size and Complexity

17

(4)

Trend 4: Extensive Manipulation of Natural Objects and the Development of Motor Skills to Facilitate Toolmaking

21

(3)

Trend 5: The Increased Acquisition of Meat Protein

24

(2)

Summary

26

(1)

Suggested Readings

27

(2)

CHAPTER TWO FOSSILS, FOSSILIZATION, AND DATING METHODS

29

(15)

The Fossilization Process

30

(2)

Dating Fossil Materials

32

(7)

Relative Dating

33

(3)

Chronometric Dating

36

(3)

Determining Past Environments

39

(4)

Climate and Geology

40

(1)

Plant Communities

41

(1)

Mammal Communities

42

(1)

Summary

43

(1)

Suggested Readings

43

(1)

CHAPTER THREE DETERMINING EVOLUTIONARY RELATIONSHIPS

44

(19)

Linnaean Classification Scheme

45

(1)

Rules of Nomenclature

45

(3)

The Evolutionary Process

48

(3)

Speciation

51

(2)

Parallel and Convergent Evolution

53

(1)

Establishing Evolutionary Relationships

54

(2)

Guidelines for Evaluating Fossil Materials

56

(3)

Assessing the Pace of Evolution and Mode of Speciation

59

(2)

Summary

61

(1)

Suggested Readings

62

(1)

CHAPTER FOUR OUR PLACE IN THE ANIMAL KINGDOM

63

(18)

Geologic Time Scale

64

(3)

Vertebrate Evolution

67

(2)

Mammal-Like Reptiles and Mammalian Evolution

69

(3)

Mammalian Traits

70

(1)

Mammalian Subclasses

71

(1)

The Insectivora

72

(2)

The Primates

74

(5)

Primate Traits

74

(2)

The Human Ape Relationship

76

(3)

The Human Primate

79

(1)

Summary

80

(1)

Suggested Readings

80

(1)

CHAPTER FIVE RECONSTRUCTING ANCIENT HUMAN BEHAVIOR AND SOCIAL ORGANIZATIONS: USE OF THE COMPARATIVE APPROACH

81

(28)

Overview

82

(1)

The Nature of Explanatory Models

83

(3)

Foraging Societies

86

(4)

Rethinking Gender Roles in Early Hominins

89

(1)

Nonhuman Primates

90

(16)

A Note of Caution

91

(1)

Savanna Dwelling Baboons as Models of Early Hominin Behavior

91

(1)

Chimpanzees as Models of Early Hominin Behavior

92

(1)

Chimpanzee Tool Use

93

(2)

Another Great Ape in the Cultural Arena: The Orangutan

95

(1)

Hunting by Chimpanzees

96

(3)

Chimpanzee Social Organization and Feeding Ecology

99

(2)

The Peaceful Bonobo

101

(4)

A Composite Model

105

(1)

Social Carnivores

106

(1)

Summary

106

(1)

Suggested Readings

107

(2)

CHAPTER SIX EARLY PRIMATE EVOLUTION

109

(18)

Overview

110

(1)

Dietary Patterns

111

(1)

"Archaic" Primates of the Paleocene

112

(2)

Eocene True Primates

114

(4)

Adaptive Scenarios for Primate Origins

118

(4)

Arboreal Hypothesis

118

(1)

Visual Predation Theory

119

(1)

Angiosperm Exploitation Hypothesis

120

(2)

The Appearance of the First Higher Primates

122

(1)

The Earliest Anthropoids

122

(3)

Summary

125

(1)

Suggested Readings

126

(1)

CHAPTER SEVEN BASAL ANTHROPOIDS, THE EVOLUTION OF MONKEYS, AND THE TRANSITION TO APES

127

(32)

Fayum Deposits, Egypt

128

(1)

The Parapithecids

129

(1)

The Propliopithecids

130

(4)

The Oligopithecines

134

(1)

Origin of New World Monkeys

135

(3)

Origin of Old World Monkeys

138

(2)

Origin of the Apes

140

(17)

Backdrop for Ape Evolution

142

(1)

Early African Apes: The Proconsulids

143

(3)

Middle-Late Miocene African Hominoids

146

(2)

Eurasian Apes

148

(2)

Oreopithecus

150

(1)

The Dryopithecines

150

(2)

The Sivapithecines

152

(2)

The Ramapithecus Debate

154

(2)

Another (Big) Member of the Orangutan Clade: Gigantopithecus

156

(1)

Summary

157

(1)

Suggested Readings

158

(1)

CHAPTER EIGHT THE EARLY HOMININS

159

(30)

Geographic and Temporal Range of the Early Hominins

160

(7)

East Africa and Chad

160

(5)

South Africa

165

(2)

The Nature of the Fossil Evidence

167

(1)

Characteristics of the Fossil Species

168

(5)

Evolutionary Trends

173

(10)

Body Size and Limb Proportions

173

(1)

Jaws and "Teeth

173

(2)

Skull, Brain Size and Structure, and Face

175

(2)

The Postcranial Skeleton

177

(4)

Sexual Dimorphism

181

(2)

Early Hominin Paleoecology

183

(1)

Lifeways

184

(3)

Did Early Hominins Have Tools?

185

(1)

Dart's Osteodontokeratic Culture

185

(1)

Diet

186

(1)

Summary

187

(1)

Suggested Readings

187

(2)

CHAPTER NINE THE HOMININ DIVERGENCE

189

(27)

Historical Perspective

190

(1)

Geographic and Temporal Range of Late Pliocene Hominins

191

(2)

The Fossil Evidence

193

(4)

The Robust Australopithecines

194

(1)

Early Homo

195

(2)

Evolutionary Trends

197

(4)

Body Size

197

(1)

Postcranial Morphology

198

(3)

Lifeways

201

(7)

Tool Use and Manufacture

201

(2)

Other Possible Cultural Remains

203

(2)

Food Sources

205

(2)

Hunting and Scavenging

207

(1)

Paleoecology

208

(7)

The Dietary Hypothesis

211

(2)

Environmental Change and Hominin Evolution

213

(2)

Summary

215

(1)

Suggested Readings

215

(1)

CHAPTER TEN THE SPREAD OF HOMO BEYOND AFRICA

216

(43)

Overview

217

(2)

Geographic and Temporal Range of Plio-Pleistocene Hominins

219

(25)

Africa

219

(8)

Middle East

227

(1)

Asia

228

(12)

Europe

240

(4)

General Morphology

244

(6)

Evolutionary Relationships

250

(2)

Acheulian Tradition

252

(3)

Homo erectus and the Use of Fire

255

(2)

Summary

257

(1)

Suggested Readings

258

(1)

CHAPTER ELEVEN TRANSITIONS TO ARCHAIC HOMO SAPIENS

259

(17)

Overview

260

(1)

African Fossils

261

(2)

Asian Fossils

263

(3)

European Fossils

266

(6)

Lifeways

272

(3)

Summary

275

(1)

Suggested Readings

275

(1)

CHAPTER TWELVE NEANDERTALS AND THEIR IMMEDIATE PREDECESSORS

276

(33)

The Neandertals: The Background

277

(3)

Discovery of Neandertal Remains

278

(2)

European Eemian (or Riss-Wurm) Interglacial Sample

280

(4)

Fontéchevade, France

280

(1)

Ehringsdorf, Germany

281

(1)

Krapina, Croatia

282

(2)

The Neandertals: The Fossil Sample

284

(11)

Western Europe

284

(4)

Central and Eastern Europe

288

(3)

The Middle East

291

(4)

Cultural Remains and Lifeways

295

(8)

Neandertal Burials

300

(3)

Evolutionary Relationships

303

(5)

Genetic Evidence

306

(2)

Summary

308

(1)

Suggested Readings

308

(1)

CHAPTER THIRTEEN THE APPEARANCE OF HOMO SAPIENS SAPIENS

309

(45)

Overview: Models and DNA

310

(10)

Mitochondrial DNA

314

(3)

Y Chromosome

317

(1)

Nuclear DNA

318

(1)

Fossils versus DNA

319

(1)

The Human Fossil Sample

320

(21)

Africa

320

(3)

Europe

323

(2)

Asia

325

(3)

Australia and the Pacific Region

328

(2)

New World Populations

330

(10)

South American Sites

340

(1)

Upper Paleolithic Lifeways

341

(3)

Dietary Patterns

341

(1)

Dwellings

341

(1)

Group Organization

342

(1)

Tool Inventory

342

(2)

Major Features

344

(1)

Aesthetic Expression of Upper Paleolithic Populations

344

(8)

Cave Art

345

(5)

Sculpture and Engravings

350

(2)

Summary

352

(1)

Suggested Readings

353

(1)

CHAPTER FOURTEEN CONCLUSION?

354

(9)

Retrospective

355

(1)

Questions to Be Answered and Gaps to Be Filled

356

(2)

What Constitutes Human Status?

358

(1)

Prospects for Continuing Evolution

359

(4)

Glossary

363

(5)

Bibliography

368

(27)

Index

395

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Understanding Human Evolution

Summary

Author Biography

Table of Contents

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Summary

Author Biography

Table of Contents

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