Sediba walked upright but it lacked other human characteristics such as a large brain, flat face, or the dexterity to use tools.
An early ancestor of Homo sapiens known as Australopithecus sediba was believed to have foraged for hard foods mingled with tree bark and foliage. But a recent study sourcing new technology contradicts this theory, suggesting that the ancestors’ jaws were too feeble to chew on hard objects, according to a report published in Dailly Mail. Researchers ran a series of computer models known as biomechanical testing on the specimen originally from southern Africa dating around two million years ago. Sediba is considered to be the closest link to Homo sapiens, but no anthropological evidence certifies the theory.
Sediba walked upright but it lacked other human characteristics such as a large brain, flat face, or the dexterity to use tools. “If it had bitten as hard as possible on its molar teeth using the full force of its chewing muscles, it would have dislocated its jaw,” clarified Dr Justin Ledogar, a researcher at the University of New England in Australia. The study’s team lead, David Strait, a professor of anthropology at Washington University in St. Louis, also adds, “This is a surprise, because other australopiths were well adapted to process foods that were difficult to chew or crack open.They were able to efficiently bite down on foods with very high forces.”
Researchers conducted the studies on a fossilised skull discovered in 2008 in Malapa cave near Johannesburg, South Africa. The biomechanical testing they employed is the same type testing used by engineers to determine whether planes, cars, machine parts, and other mechanical accessories are durable enough. The results revealed that the hominid didn’t have the necessary jaw structure to break a diet of hard foods.
In another study, however, a microscopic examination of similar specimens detailed that they certainly ate hard foods. But the new findings in conjunction with the earlier results suggests that A. sediba was able to eat hard substances but was not adapted to them. Scientists also clarify that the studies weren’t intended to draw a definitive link to humans but the data adds new insight to current dogma.
Other contradictions exist, as “Humans also have this limitation on biting forcefully and we suspect that early Homo had it as well, yet the other australopiths that we have examined are not nearly as limited in this regard,’ said Dr Ledogar of the study.
The original study was published in the journal, Nature Communications and builds on the foundation of research announced in September that concluded early ancestors dwelling in Africa expanded their diets 3.76 million years ago to encompass new kinds of plants. This adaptation gave the subset of hominids evolutionary leverage over others allowing them to thrive in a wide spectrum of environments.
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