Two types of ancient people who were thinking that they are unknown to each other roamed the African plains approximately 1.5 million years ago, research suggests.
Archaeologists have discovered four sets of footprints preserved in mud in Kenya’s Turkana Basin, an area that has become important for understanding human evolution.
The discovery is the first direct evidence the researchers said.
And the movement also opens up the possibility that the two groups interacted with each other and attracted each other
The feet Paranthropus boisei, a small ape with a small brain and broad, flat face with large teeth, and Homo erectus, who closely resemble modern humans and are said to be our direct ancestors.
The researchers concluded that the foot of P. boisei may not have been suitable for long-distance running, which may explain why the slippage found among H. erectus survived into subsequent generations.
‘One hypothesis suggests that H. erectus was the first hominin to practice modern physical activity, such as bipedal and endurance running, and that this change put them on a different evolutionary path,’ the team shared in the study.
Whether the two people crossed the eastern side of Lake Turkana at the same time—or a day or two apart—they must have been aware of each other’s presence, said study co-author Kevin Hatala, a paleontologist at the University of Chatham in Pittsburgh.
‘Maybe they saw each other, maybe they knew each other were there, and maybe they were affected by each other in some way,’ he said.
Archaeologists have discovered four sets of footprints preserved in mud in Kenya’s Turkana Basin, an area that has become important for understanding human evolution.
One group was Homo erectus, who are very similar to modern humans and are said to be our direct ancestors.
Newly discovered footprints give the impression of two types of people walking along a muddy lake, submerged millions of years ago.
Researchers were able to distinguish one set of footprints from another using newly developed methods, including 3D scanning techniques that allow them to take digital samples of the images for detailed analysis.
“This is the first evidence of two different types of bipedalism among Pleistocene hominids appearing on the same terrain,” the team shared in a statement.
Homo erectus appeared to walk in a similar fashion to modern humans, hitting the ground heel first, rolling the weight of the foot with the toes, and pushing off again.
Another species, P. boisei, also walked upright but ‘in a way unlike anything we’ve seen before, anywhere else,’ said co-author Erin Marie Williams-Hatala, an evolutionary biologist at Chatham University.
The researchers found that prints made by P. boisei share similarities with other ancient human patterns, including those found in Laetoli, Tanzania, 3.6 million years ago.
The tracks belonged to the species Australopithecus afarensis, which has hip and leg bones very similar to those of modern humans.
This foot belonged to Paranthropus boisei, a pair of monkeys with small brains and long, flat faces with large teeth.
Whether the two people passed through the eastern side of Lake Turkana at the same time—or within a day or two of each other—they must have been aware of each other’s presence.
The new discovery showed that P. boisei had a different heel strike or kicking behavior from Tanzania and modern humans.
P. boisei was nicknamed the ‘Nutcracker Man’ because of its powerful jaws and large teeth, which are attached to a large shell on the skull.
Its unique form of walking means that this transition to bipedalism – walking on two feet – did not happen all at once, in a single process.
Researchers suggested that the foot of P. boisei (left) was not suited for long-distance running, which may explain why the slippage found among H. erectus survived into later generations.
Instead, there may be different ways that early humans learned to walk, run, stumble and slide on ancient mudflats.
The researchers determined that P. boisei would be 8.5 times larger in males or 10 times larger in females, Life Sciences report
When H. erectus was average women’s size 4 to men’s size six.
Hatala explained that new from they reveal fascinating details about the evolution of the human body and its movements, and provide some insights into the behavior and environment of ancient people.
“With this kind of information, we can see how living people, millions of years ago, were moving around in their environment and communicating with each other, or even with other animals,” he added.
‘That’s something we can’t really get from bones or stone tools.’
