Scientists pin hopes on 7 million-year-old fossil for earliest 'ancestor of humankind'
A groundbreaking study has rekindled the debate over the origins of humanity, with researchers arguing that an ape-like species discovered in Africa 7 million years ago is the most promising candidate yet to be our ancient ancestor. The discovery of Sahelanthropus tchadensis, an early hominin thought to have lived during the evolutionary split from chimpanzees, has sparked a renewed interest in understanding how it moved around on two legs.
According to Dr Scott Williams, lead author of the study and associate professor at New York University, the new analysis of Sahelanthropus' bones reveals key adaptations that suggest its species walked upright. This is confirmed by the presence of a femoral tubercle – a bump on the thigh bone that serves as an attachment point for powerful ligaments. When seated, these ligaments are loose; when standing, they tighten and stabilize the torso.
The study's findings also show evidence of natural twist in the thigh bone, which allows it to point forward, and buttock muscles that keep hips stable during walking and running. These hallmarks are characteristic of bipedal hominins, adding weight to the argument that Sahelanthropus was indeed a two-legged walker.
However, not all scientists are convinced. Dr Marine Cazenave, at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Germany, points out that many results suggest similarities with African great apes or extinct apes and criticizes the evidence for upright walking as "weak." She questions whether the femoral tubercle is directly related to upright walking and notes its faintness in a damaged region of the thigh bone.
Other researchers also have doubts. Dr Rhianna Drummond-Clarke, at the same institute, suggests that more work is needed to determine if Sahelanthropus walked on two feet in trees or on the ground – the latter being a defining feature of the human lineage.
The debate highlights the ongoing challenge of piecing together our ancient ancestors' biology and behavior from fragmented fossil records. The study's authors acknowledge that more fossils, particularly from lower body parts, would be necessary to solidify their claims. They welcome any new finds when the Chadian-French team returns to the site this year.
The search for Sahelanthropus' secrets continues, as researchers strive to shed light on humanity's evolutionary origins. With each new discovery, the puzzle of our ancient ancestors becomes more complex and intriguing – but also more tantalizingly close to solution.
A groundbreaking study has rekindled the debate over the origins of humanity, with researchers arguing that an ape-like species discovered in Africa 7 million years ago is the most promising candidate yet to be our ancient ancestor. The discovery of Sahelanthropus tchadensis, an early hominin thought to have lived during the evolutionary split from chimpanzees, has sparked a renewed interest in understanding how it moved around on two legs.
According to Dr Scott Williams, lead author of the study and associate professor at New York University, the new analysis of Sahelanthropus' bones reveals key adaptations that suggest its species walked upright. This is confirmed by the presence of a femoral tubercle – a bump on the thigh bone that serves as an attachment point for powerful ligaments. When seated, these ligaments are loose; when standing, they tighten and stabilize the torso.
The study's findings also show evidence of natural twist in the thigh bone, which allows it to point forward, and buttock muscles that keep hips stable during walking and running. These hallmarks are characteristic of bipedal hominins, adding weight to the argument that Sahelanthropus was indeed a two-legged walker.
However, not all scientists are convinced. Dr Marine Cazenave, at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Germany, points out that many results suggest similarities with African great apes or extinct apes and criticizes the evidence for upright walking as "weak." She questions whether the femoral tubercle is directly related to upright walking and notes its faintness in a damaged region of the thigh bone.
Other researchers also have doubts. Dr Rhianna Drummond-Clarke, at the same institute, suggests that more work is needed to determine if Sahelanthropus walked on two feet in trees or on the ground – the latter being a defining feature of the human lineage.
The debate highlights the ongoing challenge of piecing together our ancient ancestors' biology and behavior from fragmented fossil records. The study's authors acknowledge that more fossils, particularly from lower body parts, would be necessary to solidify their claims. They welcome any new finds when the Chadian-French team returns to the site this year.
The search for Sahelanthropus' secrets continues, as researchers strive to shed light on humanity's evolutionary origins. With each new discovery, the puzzle of our ancient ancestors becomes more complex and intriguing – but also more tantalizingly close to solution.
7 million years old is like, crazy old 
! The idea that it might be our earliest ancestor is mind-blowing 
. I mean, can you even imagine walking on two legs back then? 
It's wild to think about how our ancestors were probably super flexible and strong 
.
. The femoral tubercle and natural twist in the thigh bone are so cool 
. Maybe they'll find some juicy new fossils on their next dig 
.
. Like, our ancestors were living, breathing creatures just like us 
. It's a trip to imagine what life was like 7 million years ago 
!
just think about it, 7 million years ago, some ape-like creature is already walking upright 
but we still dont know everything about it 
need more fossils to piece together the puzzle 
. Dr Cazenave's point about it being weak in that damaged region is valid 
. And what if it didn't affect walking at all? Like, maybe it was just another adaptation for some other activity entirely 
.
. I'm not sure how much more evidence we need to prove that Sahelanthropus was a two-legged walker 
. Can't we just imagine what life would have been like for these early hominins, living in Africa 7 million years ago? 
It's all so fascinating! 
And who knows, maybe one day we'll find some fossils that prove Sahelanthropus was indeed our ancient ancestor... or maybe they'll find something entirely different and blow all this out of the water.
I can feel how frustrated you must be seeing all these different opinions about this fascinating discovery... it's like trying to put together a super complicated puzzle with missing pieces 
! The fact that researchers are still debating and discussing the findings means they're still excited about the possibilities 
. We're all in this together, and that's something to be proud of 
!
And now scientists are all like "oh, this fossil might be our ancestor" and I'm over here like *yawn*. Don't get me wrong, it's cool to learn about our ancient homies and all, but can't we just take a break from trying to figure out who walked on two feet first? 
7 million years old is still super young for being an "ancestor" lol. I mean, I get it, we want to know where we came from, but can't we just take a few selfies with our ancient relatives instead of trying to prove everything through bones? 
anyway, I guess this is cool and all... if they're saying this guy walked on two legs, that's pretty wild. doesn't change the fact that we're still basically apes at heart tho 
They're right, though, we do need more fossils to confirm everything, but I'm rooting for them to find some amazing new discoveries soon! 
Like, we're still trying to figure out if Sahelanthropus was even walking on two legs?! 
The fact that some of these researchers are questioning the evidence for upright walking is a bit frustrating, I mean, isn't that what they're trying to figure out in the first place?! 
But honestly tho 
Sahelanthropus tchadensis is def one of the oldest candidates for our ancient ancestor but idk if its 2 leggedness is really that solid 
especially the femoral tubercle 
And yeah 
and I love how the researchers are acknowledging that they need more fossils to solidify their claims 
I've been reading about it and there's still some debate among scientists about whether this Sahelanthropus tchadensis was actually a two-legged walker or not. It's like, their bones show some pretty cool adaptations for walking upright, but others are all like "hold up, that's not conclusive at all" 
.
. Maybe we'll finally get some solid answers about where humanity came from and how we ended up being, well, us 
.
... So basically they're saying that this 7 million-year-old fossil is like, our OG human ancestor or whatever 
. But let's be real, folks, it's not like we can just walk into a museum and see the fossil in all its glory 
. The fact that they found some cool bones with a femoral tubercle and stuff doesn't exactly break new ground.
. And can they at least provide some decent visuals or videos to go with their study? A fossil is not exactly something you can Google image 
.