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Paranthropus aethiopicus

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Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science
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Synonyms

Australopithecus aethiopicus ; Paraaustralopithecus aethiopicus

Definition

Early hominin species that lived in East Africa between 2.7 and 2.3 million years ago (mya) and is distinguished by its large teeth and jaws

Introduction

Paranthropus aethiopicus is a species of early hominin that lived in East Africa approximately 2.7–2.3 million years ago (mya). Its designation as a hominin indicates that it is more closely related to modern humans than to any other living primate. However, this species lived alongside members of our own genus, Homo, and is thus believed to have gone extinct without contributing directly to the evolution of modern humans. Nonetheless, its study provides an important comparative context for our own evolutionary history.

Morphology and Evolutionary Relationships

Paranthropus aethiopicusis one of three hominin species distinguished by having more “robust” skulls than hominins of other genera. The “robust” traits of these skulls include large and...

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References

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Correspondence to Paul Constantino .

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Constantino, P. (2016). Paranthropus aethiopicus . In: Weekes-Shackelford, V., Shackelford, T., Weekes-Shackelford, V. (eds) Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_3429-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_3429-1

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  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-16999-6

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