Human evolutionary history
About this app
A scrubbable timeline Australopithecus → Homo sapiens: time period, skull shape, brain volume and traits (upright gait, tools) — the trends of human evolution.
Trends in human evolution
Human evolutionary history spans several million years. The hominins include species that increasingly walked upright. Fossils reveal three trends. First, cranial capacity grew, on average from about 450 cm³ in Australopithecus africanus through about 900 cm³ in Homo erectus to about 1350 cm³ in modern humans. Second, Australopithecus already walked upright, as the Laetoli footprints show, which freed the hands for tool use. Third, the brow ridge disappeared and the forehead became higher and steeper.
What the app shows
A scrubbable timeline leads through five species: Australopithecus africanus, Homo habilis, Homo erectus, Homo neanderthalensis and Homo sapiens. For each species the app shows a freely licensed skull photo, time range, cranial capacity, body height and characteristic traits. The data follow the Smithsonian Human Origins Program. The species serve as examples and do not form a direct line of ancestors.
Things to try
Drag the time slider or tap a point on the timeline. Highlight a trait such as upright walking, tool use or brow ridge and see which species show it. Turn on the brain trend to follow the increase in cranial capacity over time. Compare Neanderthals and Homo sapiens as well, whose cranial capacities are similar.
Frequently asked questions
- Did humans evolve from apes?
- Humans did not evolve from any living ape species. Humans and chimpanzees share common ancestors, and the two lineages split several million years ago. In the broader sense humans are themselves great apes.
- How did brain size change during human evolution?
- Cranial capacity increased markedly over the course of human evolution. Australopithecus africanus averaged about 450 cm³, Homo erectus about 900 cm³ and modern humans about 1350 cm³. Values vary considerably within each species.
- Which came first: walking upright or a large brain?
- Upright walking came first. Australopithecus already walked on two legs, as the roughly 3.6-million-year-old Laetoli footprints show, but had a brain barely larger than a chimpanzee’s. The strong increase in brain size followed later within the genus Homo.
- Which species does the Human Evolution app show?
- The app places Australopithecus africanus, Homo habilis, Homo erectus, Neanderthals and Homo sapiens on a timeline. Each species has a credited skull photo, time range, cranial capacity, body height and traits that can be highlighted one at a time.
Subject: Biology (Gymnasium)
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