Paranthropus boisei
Encyclopedia
Paranthropus boisei was an early hominin and described as the largest of the Paranthropus
species. It lived from about 2.6 until about 1.2 million years ago during the Pliocene
and Pleistocene
epochs in Eastern Africa.
on July 17, 1959, at Olduvai Gorge
, Tanzania
, the well-preserved cranium (nicknamed "Nutcracker Man") was dated to 1.75 million years old and had characteristics distinctive of the robust australopithecines. Mary and her husband Louis Leakey
classified the find as Zinjanthropus boisei: "Zinj" for the medieval East African region of Zanj
, "anthropus" meaning ape or ape-human, and "boisei" for Charles Boise (the anthropologists team’s funder at the time). Paranthropus boisei (as the species was eventually categorized) proved to be a treasure especially when the anthropologists' son Richard Leakey
considered it to be the first hominin species to use stone tools. Another skull was unearthed in 1969 by Richard at Koobi Fora
near the Lake Turkana
region, in Kenya.
The brain volume
is quite small, about 500 and 550 cm³, not much larger in comparison to Australopithecus afarensis
and Australopithecus africanus
. It had a skull highly specialized for heavy chewing and several traits seen in modern day gorilla
s. P. boisei inhabited savanna
h woodland territories. Males weighed 68 kg (149.9 lb) and stood 1.3 metre tall, while females weighed 45 kg (99.2 lb) and stood 1.05 metre tall. The average adult males were much larger than females (sexual dimorphism
), as was the case in virtually all australopithecine species. The back molar teeth were relatively large, with an area over twice as great as is found in modern human
s. The species is sometimes referred to as “Nutcracker Man” because it has the biggest, flattest cheek teeth and the thickest enamel of any known hominin.
Some argue that the craniodental morphology of this taxon (e.g., large postcanine dentition, thick enamel, robust mandibles, sagittal cresting, flaring zygomatic region) are indicative of a diet of hard or tough foods such as ground tubers, nuts and seeds. However, research on the molar microwear of P. boisei found a microwear pattern very different than that observed for P. robustus in South Africa which is thought to have fed on hard foods as a "fallback resource. This work suggests that hard foods were an infrequent part of its diet. The carbon isotope ratios of P. boisei suggest that it had a diet dominated by C4
vegetation.
, Ethiopia
. The partial skull's designation is KGA10-525 and is dated to 1.4 million years old. It is the biggest skull specimen ever found of P. boisei. The oldest specimen of P. boisei was found in Omo
, Ethiopia and dates to 2.3 million years old classified as (L. 74a-21) while the youngest speciemen from Olduvai Gorge
dates 1.2 million years old classified as OH 3 and OH 38.
Paranthropus
The robust australopithecines, members of the extinct hominin genus Paranthropus , were bipedal hominids that probably descended from the gracile australopithecine hominids...
species. It lived from about 2.6 until about 1.2 million years ago during the Pliocene
Pliocene
The Pliocene Epoch is the period in the geologic timescale that extends from 5.332 million to 2.588 million years before present. It is the second and youngest epoch of the Neogene Period in the Cenozoic Era. The Pliocene follows the Miocene Epoch and is followed by the Pleistocene Epoch...
and Pleistocene
Pleistocene
The Pleistocene is the epoch from 2,588,000 to 11,700 years BP that spans the world's recent period of repeated glaciations. The name pleistocene is derived from the Greek and ....
epochs in Eastern Africa.
Discovery
First discovered by anthropologist Mary LeakeyMary Leakey
Mary Leakey was a British archaeologist and anthropologist, who discovered the first skull of a fossil ape on Rusinga Island and also a noted robust Australopithecine called Zinjanthropus at Olduvai. For much of her career she worked together with her husband, Louis Leakey, in Olduvai Gorge,...
on July 17, 1959, at Olduvai Gorge
Olduvai Gorge
The Olduvai Gorge is a steep-sided ravine in the Great Rift Valley that stretches through eastern Africa. It is in the eastern Serengeti Plains in northern Tanzania and is about long. It is located 45 km from the Laetoli archaeological site...
, Tanzania
Tanzania
The United Republic of Tanzania is a country in East Africa bordered by Kenya and Uganda to the north, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, and Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique to the south. The country's eastern borders lie on the Indian Ocean.Tanzania is a state...
, the well-preserved cranium (nicknamed "Nutcracker Man") was dated to 1.75 million years old and had characteristics distinctive of the robust australopithecines. Mary and her husband Louis Leakey
Louis Leakey
Louis Seymour Bazett Leakey was a British archaeologist and naturalist whose work was important in establishing human evolutionary development in Africa. He also played a major role in creating organizations for future research in Africa and for protecting wildlife there...
classified the find as Zinjanthropus boisei: "Zinj" for the medieval East African region of Zanj
Zanj
Zanj was a name used by medieval Arab geographers to refer to both a certain portion of the coast of East Africa and its inhabitants, Bantu-speaking peoples called the Zanj...
, "anthropus" meaning ape or ape-human, and "boisei" for Charles Boise (the anthropologists team’s funder at the time). Paranthropus boisei (as the species was eventually categorized) proved to be a treasure especially when the anthropologists' son Richard Leakey
Richard Leakey
Richard Erskine Frere Leakey is a politician, paleoanthropologist and conservationist. He is second of the three sons of the archaeologists Louis Leakey and Mary Leakey, and is the younger brother of Colin Leakey...
considered it to be the first hominin species to use stone tools. Another skull was unearthed in 1969 by Richard at Koobi Fora
Koobi Fora
Koobi Fora refers primarily to a region around Koobi Fora Ridge, located on the eastern shore of Lake Turkana in the territory of the nomadic Gabbra people. According to the National Museums of Kenya, the name comes from the Gabbra language:...
near the Lake Turkana
Lake Turkana
Lake Turkana , formerly known as Lake Rudolf, is a lake in the Great Rift Valley in Kenya, with its far northern end crossing into Ethiopia. It is the world's largest permanent desert lake and the world's largest alkaline lake...
region, in Kenya.
Morphology and interpretations
Cranial capacity
Cranial capacity is a measure of the volume of the interior of the cranium of those vertebrates who have both a cranium and a brain. The most commonly used unit of measure is the cubic centimetre or cc...
is quite small, about 500 and 550 cm³, not much larger in comparison to Australopithecus afarensis
Australopithecus afarensis
Australopithecus afarensis is an extinct hominid that lived between 3.9 and 2.9 million years ago. A. afarensis was slenderly built, like the younger Australopithecus africanus. It is thought that A...
and Australopithecus africanus
Australopithecus africanus
Australopithecus africanus was an early hominid, an australopithecine, who lived between 2–3 million years ago in the Pliocene. In common with the older Australopithecus afarensis, A. africanus was slenderly built, or gracile, and was thought to have been a direct ancestor of modern humans. Fossil...
. It had a skull highly specialized for heavy chewing and several traits seen in modern day gorilla
Gorilla
Gorillas are the largest extant species of primates. They are ground-dwelling, predominantly herbivorous apes that inhabit the forests of central Africa. Gorillas are divided into two species and either four or five subspecies...
s. P. boisei inhabited savanna
Savanna
A savanna, or savannah, is a grassland ecosystem characterized by the trees being sufficiently small or widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to support an unbroken herbaceous layer consisting primarily of C4 grasses.Some...
h woodland territories. Males weighed 68 kg (149.9 lb) and stood 1.3 metre tall, while females weighed 45 kg (99.2 lb) and stood 1.05 metre tall. The average adult males were much larger than females (sexual dimorphism
Sexual dimorphism
Sexual dimorphism is a phenotypic difference between males and females of the same species. Examples of such differences include differences in morphology, ornamentation, and behavior.-Examples:-Ornamentation / coloration:...
), as was the case in virtually all australopithecine species. The back molar teeth were relatively large, with an area over twice as great as is found in modern human
Human
Humans are the only living species in the Homo genus...
s. The species is sometimes referred to as “Nutcracker Man” because it has the biggest, flattest cheek teeth and the thickest enamel of any known hominin.
Some argue that the craniodental morphology of this taxon (e.g., large postcanine dentition, thick enamel, robust mandibles, sagittal cresting, flaring zygomatic region) are indicative of a diet of hard or tough foods such as ground tubers, nuts and seeds. However, research on the molar microwear of P. boisei found a microwear pattern very different than that observed for P. robustus in South Africa which is thought to have fed on hard foods as a "fallback resource. This work suggests that hard foods were an infrequent part of its diet. The carbon isotope ratios of P. boisei suggest that it had a diet dominated by C4
C4 carbon fixation
C4 carbon fixation is one of three biochemical mechanisms, along with and CAM photosynthesis, used in carbon fixation. It is named for the 4-carbon molecule present in the first product of carbon fixation in these plants, in contrast to the 3-carbon molecule products in plants. fixation is an...
vegetation.
Fossils
In 1993, A. Amzaye found fossils of P. boisei at KonsoKonso
Konso is a town on the Sagan River in southwestern Ethiopia. The administrative center of the Konso special woreda of the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples Region, this town has a latitude and longitude of and an elevation of 1650 meters...
, Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
. The partial skull's designation is KGA10-525 and is dated to 1.4 million years old. It is the biggest skull specimen ever found of P. boisei. The oldest specimen of P. boisei was found in Omo
Omo National Park
Omo National Park is one of the National Parks of Ethiopia. Located in the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples Region on the west bank of the Omo River, the park covers approximately 4,068 square kilometers, about 870 kilometers southwest of Addis Ababa; across the Omo is the Mago National...
, Ethiopia and dates to 2.3 million years old classified as (L. 74a-21) while the youngest speciemen from Olduvai Gorge
Olduvai Gorge
The Olduvai Gorge is a steep-sided ravine in the Great Rift Valley that stretches through eastern Africa. It is in the eastern Serengeti Plains in northern Tanzania and is about long. It is located 45 km from the Laetoli archaeological site...
dates 1.2 million years old classified as OH 3 and OH 38.
Other well preserved specimens
- OH 5OH 5OH 5 is a fossilized cranium and the holotype of the species Paranthropus boisei. It was discovered in Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania, by archaeologist-paleontologist Mary Leakey in 1959...
Zinjanthropus or "Zinj" or "Nutcrackerman" is the first P. boisei found by Mary Leakey at Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania belonging to an adult male (circa. 1.75 mya).
- KNM ER 406KNM ER 406KNM ER 406 is a fossilized skull of the species Paranthropus boisei. It was discovered in Koobi Fora, Kenya by Richard Leakey in 1969.It is estimated to be 1.7 million years old.-See also:* List of fossil sites ...
is a small partial cranium discovered by H. Mutua and Richard Leakey in 1969 found at Koobi ForaKoobi ForaKoobi Fora refers primarily to a region around Koobi Fora Ridge, located on the eastern shore of Lake Turkana in the territory of the nomadic Gabbra people. According to the National Museums of Kenya, the name comes from the Gabbra language:...
, KenyaKenyaKenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
displays large zygomatic archZygomatic archThe zygomatic arch or cheek bone is formed by the zygomatic process of temporal bone and the temporal process of the zygomatic bone , the two being united by an oblique suture; the tendon of the Temporalis passes medial to the arch to gain insertion into the coronoid process...
es, a cranial capacity of 510 cm³ (circa. 1.7 mya).
- KNM WT 17400 a partial cranium with similar characteristics as KNM WT 17000 "Black skull" belonging to Paranthropus aethiopicusParanthropus aethiopicusParanthropus aethiopicus is an extinct species of hominid. The finding discovered in 1985 by Alan Walker in West Turkana, Kenya, KNM WT 17000 , is one of the earliest examples of robust pliocene hominids...
. The skull was found at West TurkanaLake TurkanaLake Turkana , formerly known as Lake Rudolf, is a lake in the Great Rift Valley in Kenya, with its far northern end crossing into Ethiopia. It is the world's largest permanent desert lake and the world's largest alkaline lake...
, Kenya (circa. 1.7 mya).
- ER 406 was found by Richard Leakey and H. Mutua in 1970 at Koobi Fora, Kenya is a partial cranium most likely identified as belonging to a female (circa. 1.7 mya).
See also
- List of fossil sites (with link directory)
- List of hominina (hominid) fossils (with images)
- OlduwanOlduwanThe Oldowan, often spelled Olduwan or Oldawan, is the archaeological term used to refer to the stone tool industry that was used by Hominines during the Lower Paleolithic period...
External links
- Archaeology Info
- MNSU
- Paranthropus boisei - The Smithsonian Institution's Human Origins Program
- The first skull of Australopithecus boisei, Gen Suwa et al., letters to nature, Nature, Vol. 389, 2 October 1997
- American Museum of Natural History illustration of P. boisei by Jay Matternes