3.4 Human Evolution Where did humans come from?

We are going to be learning about What are Primates and how do they relate to Humans and Apes? What are Australopithecines and what is there significance? What did early genus Homo look like? Out of Africa Signs in the skulls

Primates Humans are in the class Mammalia, order Primates, family Hominidae, genus Homo. Other Primates include:

Which came first? Look at the pictures of skulls. They are all from the family Homidae but existed at different times. In your group decide which came first and explain why.

Which came first?

It began in Africa Animals that are most like humans are chimpanzees, which only live in Africa. Darwin predicted that this would be the best place to look for fossils of human origin.

Humans and apes Humans are classified in the family Hominidae, along with chimpazees and gorillas. However, there are key differences between humans and apes, particularly in the way they walk. Do activity book 3.6

Australopithecines Australopithecines are an early group of Hominidae that anthropologists think are our ancestors. This group contains at least six species, who are often referred to as ‘ape men’. The most likely member of this group to be our ancestor is Australopithecus aferensis.

Early genus Homo The earliest member of our genus is either: Homo habilis OR Homo ergaster(erectus)

Out of Africa The ‘Out of Africa’ is the most widely accepted model for the origin of our species, homo sapiens. This theory is supported by mitochondrial DNA testing and Y chromosome testing.

Signs in the skull Face becomes flatter Jaw shortens Chin develops Forehead becomes vertical Brain space and size enlarges