124k views
5 votes
Homo naledi, recently discovered in south africa, has a sagittal keel, large browridge, thick cranial bones, and reduced tooth size. the brain size is small, close to 500cc. where might this new species fit in the larger pattern of human evolution in africa?

a. h. naledi sits comfortably at the juncture of australopithecus and early homo, since all of its traits seem intermediate between the two.
b. h. naledi demonstrates the exact mix of traits expected for a new homo fossil of this time period and this region.
c. h. naledi has several traits that do not fit with the genus homo, including its large browridge and thick cranial bones; however, it must be homo because it is securely dated to 1 mya.
d. h. naledi seems most likely a member of the genus homo; however, its small brain size is regarded as a primitive hominin trait more reminiscent of the australopithecines.

User Venice
by
7.2k points

2 Answers

4 votes

Answer:

The correct answer is option d. "h. naledi seems most likely a member of the genus homo; however, its small brain size is regarded as a primitive hominin trait more reminiscent of the australopithecines".

Step-by-step explanation:

The human evolution in Africa has been unveiled by the description of different ancestors of the modern humans, from the primitive Australopithecus afarensis to the Homo erectus. In this case, the new discovered species Homo naledi has characteristics that fit somewhere after the most primitive Australopithecus afarensis. Homo naledi has a small brain size that reminiscent of the australopithecines, however it has more modern features such as reduced tooth size and sagittal keel, which fits with the genre Homo.

User Chicrala
by
6.5k points
3 votes
The answer is D.
Homo naledi seems most likely to be a member of the genus Homo; however, its small brain size is regarded as a primitive hominin trait more reminiscent of australopithecus.
Homo naledi is an extinct species of hominin, which anthropologists first described in September 2015 and have assigned to the genus Homo.

User Wups
by
7.2k points