Studies Suggest Homo naledi Walked Upright and Climbed Trees

Homo naledi – an extinct species of hominin whose fossil skeletons were discovered in a South African cave and introduced to the world last month – may have been uniquely adapted for both tree climbing and walking as dominant forms of movement, while also being capable of precise manual manipulation, according to two new studies published in the journal Nature Communications.

One of the studies, titled The foot of Homo naledi, suggests that although its feet were the most human-like part of its body, Homo naledi didn’t use them to walk in the same way we do. They show the Homo naledi foot shares many features with a modern human foot, indicating it is well-adapted for standing and walking on two feet.

The Homo naledi hand and foot were uniquely adapted for both tree climbing and walking upright. The hand of Homo naledi reveals a unique combination of anatomy that has not been found in any other fossil human before. The wrist bones and thumb show anatomical features that are shared with Neanderthals and humans and suggest powerful grasping and the ability to use stone tools.

This mix of human-like features in combination with more primitive features demonstrates that the Homo naledi hand was both specialized for complex tool-use activities, but still used for climbing locomotion.

From our point of view, it is an amazing discovery in terms of anthropology because it totally changes the perception of human evolution and Homo naledi's bipedalism and capability to climb trees. This information did not fit in human evolution steps until today.

Regardless of age, this species is going to cause a paradigm shift in the way we think about human evolution, not only in the behavioral implications, but in morphological and anatomical terms

Read more at: http://www.sci-news.com/othersciences/anthropology/science-homo-naledi-foot-hand-03313.html