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hominin

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hominin

Any member of the zoological “tribe” Hominini (family Hominidae, order Primates), of which only one species exists today—Homo sapiens, or human beings. The term is used most often to refer to extinct members of the human lineage, some of which are now quite well known from fossil remains: Homo neanderthalensis (the Neanderthals), Homo erectus, Homo habilis, and various species of Australopithecus. The primate group most closely related to Hominini today is Gorillini (the African apes), comprising the gorilla, the chimpanzee, and the bonobo. Gorillini and Hominini are part of the great ape family, Hominidae. Some characteristics that have distinguished hominins from other primates, living and extinct, are their erect posture, bipedal locomotion, larger brains, and behavioral characteristics such as specialized tool use and, in some cases, communication through language.



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This idea has remained well-entrenched, even with recent recognition that hominin origins took place in a woodland environment and that the adaptive landscape in Africa fluctuated dramatically in response to short-term climatic shifts.
DeSilva also visited museums and universities around the world to measure hominin fossils dating to 1.
Louis) offers a textbook for anthropology courses, discussing primate morphology, fossil hominins, Miocene hominoids, and Australopiths and tracing evolution through the genus Homo, Homo erectus, and archaic hominins.
 
 
 
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