Book contents
- Only in Africa
- Only in Africa
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Foreword
- Preface
- Abbreviations
- Part I The Physical Cradle: Land Forms, Geology, Climate, Hydrology and Soils
- Part II The Savanna Garden: Grassy Vegetation and Plant Dynamics
- Part III The Big Mammal Menagerie: Herbivores, Carnivores and Their Ecosystem Impacts
- Part IV Evolutionary Transitions: From Primate Ancestors to Modern Humans
- Chapter 15 Primate Predecessors: From Trees to Ground
- Chapter 16 Primate Ecology: From Forests into Savannas
- Chapter 17 How an Ape Became a Hunter
- Chapter 18 Cultural Evolution: From Tools to Art and Genes
- Chapter 19 Reticulate Evolution Through Turbulent Times
- Chapter 20 Prospects For a Lonely Planet
- Appendix Scientific Names of Extant Animal and Plant Species Mentioned in the Book Chapters (Ecologically Conservative with Regard to Species Recognition)
- Index
- References
Chapter 17 - How an Ape Became a Hunter
from Part IV - Evolutionary Transitions: From Primate Ancestors to Modern Humans
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 09 September 2021
Book contents
- Only in Africa
- Only in Africa
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Foreword
- Preface
- Abbreviations
- Part I The Physical Cradle: Land Forms, Geology, Climate, Hydrology and Soils
- Part II The Savanna Garden: Grassy Vegetation and Plant Dynamics
- Part III The Big Mammal Menagerie: Herbivores, Carnivores and Their Ecosystem Impacts
- Part IV Evolutionary Transitions: From Primate Ancestors to Modern Humans
- Chapter 15 Primate Predecessors: From Trees to Ground
- Chapter 16 Primate Ecology: From Forests into Savannas
- Chapter 17 How an Ape Became a Hunter
- Chapter 18 Cultural Evolution: From Tools to Art and Genes
- Chapter 19 Reticulate Evolution Through Turbulent Times
- Chapter 20 Prospects For a Lonely Planet
- Appendix Scientific Names of Extant Animal and Plant Species Mentioned in the Book Chapters (Ecologically Conservative with Regard to Species Recognition)
- Index
- References
Summary
This chapter outlines the physical changes transforming the earliest ape-men into modern humans and the associated adaptive transitions. Physical advances included (1) establishment of upright locomotion towards the end of the Miocene, (2) divergence of early humans from robust ape-men during the transition into the Pleistocene, (3) emergence of fully competent bipedal locomotion ~1.7 Ma ago, (4) attainment of modern brain capacity after 0.8 Ma, and (5) development of modern facial features after 60 ka. Diets expanded to include underground storage organs of plants to bridge the dry season. The earliest humans added marrow and meat scavenged from carcasses during a midday time window. Locomotory competence combined with bare skin facilitated hunting large ungulates by endurance running after 1.7 Ma. Meat acquisition during the dry season was facilitated by concentrations of grazing ungulates developing near water. To restrict nocturnal predation at base camps, humans needed fire. To compensate for slower reproduction, mortality rates needed to be constrained lower than those incurred by ungulates.
Keywords
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Only in AfricaThe Ecology of Human Evolution, pp. 271 - 300Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2021
References
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