What is the Australopithecus?
1 Answer
Australopithecus is generic name for a group of African fossil apes who started walking upright, about 6 million years ago. The genus is regarded as a 'missing link' between fossil apes and genus Homo .
Explanation:
Australopithecus means southern ape: as the first fossil discovery was made in 1924 in Taung, South Africa. Later a number of fossils of same genus were unearthed from East Africa as well.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fe/Map_of_the_fossil_sites_of_the_early_hominids_(4.4-1M_BP)svg/220px-Map_of_the_fossil_sites_of_the_early_hominids_(4.4-1M_BP)svgpng
Australopithecines evolved in two distinct forms: one omnivorous, gracile and lighter while the other herbivorous and robust. Former is considered to be ancestral to genus Homo , and is represented by a famous fossil, named Lucy (http://www.bradshawfoundation.com/news/origins.php?id=Lucy-the-Australopithecus).
