Late Pliocene Homo and Hominid Land Use from Western Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania

American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) - Tập 299 Số 5610 - Trang 1217-1221 - 2003
Robert J. Blumenschine1, Charles R. Peters2, Fidelis T. Masao3, Ronald J. Clarke4, Alan L. Deino5, Richard L. Hay6, Carl C. Swisher7, Ian G. Stanistreet8, Gail M. Ashley7, Lindsay J. McHenry7, Nancy E. Sikes9, Nikolaas J. van der Merwe10, Joanne C. Tactikos1, Amy E. Cushing1, Daniel M. Deocampo11, Jackson K. Njau1, James I. Ebert12
1Center for Human Evolutionary Studies, Department of Anthropology, 131 George Street, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ 08901–1414, USA.
2Department of Anthropology and Institute of Ecology, Baldwin Hall, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602–1619, USA.
3Paleo-Cultural and Environmental Research, Post Office Box 70566, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
4School of Anatomical Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand Medical School, 7 York Road, Parktown 2193, Johannesburg, South Africa
5Berkeley Geochronology Center, 2455 Ridge Road, Berkeley CA 94709, USA
6Department of Geosciences, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85718, USA.
7Department of Geological Sciences, Rutgers University, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA.
8Department of Earth Sciences, University of Liverpool, Brownlow Street, Post Office Box 147, Liverpool L69 3BX, UK.
9Human Origins Program, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC 20560–0112, USA.
10Archaeology Department, University of Cape Town, 7700 Rondebosch, Cape Town, South Africa.
11Department of Mineral Sciences, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, MRC 119, Washington, DC 20560–0119, USA.
12Ebert & Associates, 3700 Rio Grande Boulevard N.W., Suite 3, Albuquerque, NM 87107, USA.

Tóm tắt

Excavation in the previously little-explored western portion of Olduvai Gorge indicates that hominid land use of the eastern paleobasin extended at least episodically to the west. Finds included a dentally complete Homo maxilla (OH 65) with lower face, Oldowan stone artifacts, and butchery-marked bones dated to be between 1.84 and 1.79 million years old. The hominid shows strong affinities to the KNM ER 1470 cranium from Kenya ( Homo rudolfensis ), a morphotype previously unrecognized at Olduvai. ER 1470 and OH 65 can be accommodated in the H. habilis holotype, casting doubt on H. rudolfensis as a biologically valid taxon.

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We thank the Tanzanian government for permission to conduct fieldwork at Olduvai; C. Kilembe O. Kileo C. Msuya F. Ndunguru G. K. Olle Moita and J. Pareso for facilitating this work; T. D. White for comments on the hominid taxonomic interpretations; C. S. Feibel for identifying Corbicula and providing the reference on its environmental tolerances; S. C. Anton for comments on table S2; and P. V. Tobias for comments on the submitted manuscript. S. R. Copeland G. F. Mollel J. Temba G. Peter and A. Venance provided excavation and mapping assistance. A. Venance and A. E. Cushing found OH 65 during excavation. The research was funded by NSF (grants SBR-9000099 SBR-9601065 and BCS-0109027) Rutgers University Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research National Geographic Society L. S. B. Leakey Foundation Smithsonian Institution Harvard University University of Georgia and Boise Fund.

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American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

Tập 299 Số 5610

1217-1221

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