What was the cause of death of Taung Child purported to be?
The Taung Child is thought have been attacked and killed by an eagle. Scientists suspect an eagle killed the Taung Child because puncture marks were found at the bottom of the 3-year-old’s eye sockets (see close-up photo below).
Why is it called the Taung Child?
Only forty days after he first saw the fossil, Dart completed a paper that named the species of Australopithecus africanus, the “southern ape from Africa”, and described it as “an extinct race of apes intermediate between living anthropoids and man”. The fossil was soon nicknamed the Taung Child.
What does the name Taung mean?
place of the lion
Taung is a small town situated in the North West Province of South Africa. The name means place of the lion and was named after Tau, the King of the Barolong. Tau is the Tswana word for lion.
Which is correct Australopithecus?
Australopithecus is the real ancestor of modern man.
Where did the Australopithecus afarensis live?
Where did Australopithecus afarensis live? Au. afarensis fossils have been unearthed in Ethiopia, Kenya and Tanzania. Map showing sites in Tanzania and Ethiopia where Australopithecus afarensis fossils have been found at Laetoli, Omo, Hadar, Woranso-Mille and Dikika.
Who discovered Mrs Ples?
Robert Broom
More than 70 years ago two palaeontologists named Robert Broom and John Robinson discovered a skull at the Sterkfontein Caves near Johannesburg. They nicknamed the skull, which is believed to be about 2.5 million years old, “Mrs Ples”.
How many villages are there in Taung?
106
The municipal area is predominantly rural and contains 106 widely scattered villages. Greater Taung has a rich heritage that visitors can explore.
Is Taung small or large?
The Taung Skull – small enough to fit in the palm of a hand – was that of a three or four-year-old child, and much smaller than a modern human of the same age.
Where did the Australopithecus afarensis get its name?
This species lived between 3.9 and 2.8 million years ago. Australopithecus means ‘southern ape’ and was originally developed for a species found in South Africa. This is the genus or group name and several closely related species now share this name.
How did au.afarensis differ from modern humans?
Similar to chimpanzees, Au. afarensis children grew rapidly after birth and reached adulthood earlier than modern humans. This meant Au. afarensis had a shorter period of growing up than modern humans have today, leaving them less time for parental guidance and socialization during childhood.
What kind of sexual dimorphism does au.afarensis have?
Au. afarensis shows strong sexual dimorphism in that the body sizes between males and females are quite different; however, sexual dimorphism in other primates is usually characterized by size differences in bodies and teeth. Fossil evidence shows that male Au. afarensis individuals
What did au.afarensis walk on two legs?
We know Au. afarensis were capable of walking upright on two legs, but they would have walked differently than modern humans do today; so, what did their bipedal locomotion look like? Did Au. afarensis usually walk upright like modern humans, or did they spend more time climbing trees like other living African apes?