What is the Difference Between Gracile and Robust

The main difference between gracile and robust is that gracile species had smaller cheek teeth, pronounced prognathism, less flared cheeks, and no sagittal crest, but robust species had enormous cheek teeth, robust jaws and massive jaw muscles, sometimes anchored to a bony crest running along the top of the skull.

1. Are humans gracile or robust?
2. Is Australopithecus afarensis gracile or robust?
3. What is a robust skull?
4. What are gracile australopithecines?
5. Why is Lucy the missing link?
6. Why did erectus leave Africa?
7. What are 3 differences between a gracile and a robust Australopith?
8. What is the main difference between robust and gracile australopithecines?
9. Did humans evolve from Australopithecus?
10. What is a robust body?
11. Who discovered Lucy?
12. What did robust australopithecines eat?

Are humans gracile or robust?

The postcranial skeleton of modern Homo sapiens is relatively gracile compared with other hominoids and earlier hominins. This gracility predisposes contemporary humans to osteoporosis and increased fracture risk.

Is Australopithecus afarensis gracile or robust?

Australopithecus afarensis and africanus, and the other species above, are known as gracile australopithecines, because of their relatively lighter build, especially in the skull and teeth. (Gracile means "slender", and in paleoanthropology is used as an antonym to "robust".)

What is a robust skull?

The "robust" australopiths are a group of fossil hominins that existed in East and southern Africa between approximately 2.5 and 1.4 million years ago (Ma). ... They are characterized by several features of the skull that give them a "robust" appearance when compared to other, more gracile hominins.

What are gracile australopithecines?

The gracile australopithecines (members of the genus Australopithecus) (Latin australis "of the south", Greek pithekos "ape") are a group of extinct hominids that are closely related to humans.

Why is Lucy the missing link?

Dr. Johanson: “Scientists [no longer] like to use the term 'missing link' because it implies there is one ancestor that uniquely forms the bridge or link between our common ancestor with the African apes and ourselves.

Why did erectus leave Africa?

Why did Homo erectus leave Africa? Dispersal of species happens for many reasons but essentially H. erectus probably drifted across northern Africa, across the Sinai Peninsula into Asia, when environmental changes meant suitable habitats and food sources stretched that far.

What are 3 differences between a gracile and a robust Australopith?

The main difference between gracile and robust is that gracile species had smaller cheek teeth, pronounced prognathism, less flared cheeks, and no sagittal crest, but robust species had enormous cheek teeth, robust jaws and massive jaw muscles, sometimes anchored to a bony crest running along the top of the skull.

What is the main difference between robust and gracile australopithecines?

In the case of australopiths, “gracile” and “robust” refer to the relative size of the jaws, teeth and chewing muscles (all contributing to the “masticatory apparatus”). Traditionally, graciles include the ≥2 million year old Australopithecus afarensis and africanus, and robusts include the later A.

Did humans evolve from Australopithecus?

The fossil record seems to indicate that Australopithecus is ancestral to Homo and modern humans. ... Earlier fossils, such as Orrorin tugenensis, indicate bipedalism around six million years ago, around the time of the split between humans and chimpanzees indicated by genetic studies.

What is a robust body?

sturdy and strong in form, constitution, or construction. "a robust body"; "a robust perennial" full-bodied, racy, rich, robust(adj) marked by richness and fullness of flavor.

Who discovered Lucy?

Lucy was found by Donald Johanson and Tom Gray on November 24, 1974, at the site of Hadar in Ethiopia. They had taken a Land Rover out that day to map in another locality. After a long, hot morning of mapping and surveying for fossils, they decided to head back to the vehicle.

What did robust australopithecines eat?

Robust species like Paranthropus robustus had large teeth as well as a ridge on top of the skull, where strong chewing muscles attached. These features allowed individuals to crush and grind hard foods such as nuts, seeds, roots, and tubers in the back of the jaw; however, P. robustus didn't just eat tough foods.