Biology Reference
In-Depth Information
beginning to develop some of the advanced features associated with
bipedal walking and an upper limb anatomy that permitted them to con-
tinue their ancestors' habit of climbing in trees. As such, they were likely
part-time, rather than full-time, bipeds.
hominins of another ilk
The earliest surefire signs of habitual walking appeared in a relatively
complete skeleton of a boy who lived near Lake Turkana, in Narioko-
KNM-WT 15000, has a multitude of nicknames, including “Narioko-
tome,” “Turkana Lad,” “the Strapping Youth,” or simply “WT 15K.”
Announced in 1985, this skeleton startled paleoanthropologists because
it was so radically different from the little, apelike australopithecines.
At around 5 feet 3 inches, WT 15K was considerably taller. The lad died
when he was about eight years old, and scientists estimate he would
Also, his body proportions were like those of modern people, although
the anatomy of his shoulder appears somewhat less advanced than ours.
In other words, he lacked arboreal features, and his legs were long and
shaped like ours—perfect for hiking out of Africa and colonizing the
world! As noted by Ian Tattersall, of the American Museum of Natural
History, “He was long-limbed and slender, with efficient heat-shedding
proportions that would have served him well in the heat of the open
tropical savanna.”
42
The boy from Kenya also had modern human-sized chewing teeth
and an estimated adult cranial capacity of around 900 cm
3
, which is
sents something that was
very
different from Lucy's little, short-legged,
long-armed “child,” who lived just a bit earlier than WT 15K. At the
time the discovery was announced, the youth was identified as an Afri-
designation is still accepted by lumpers, although some splitters prefer
