What is Australopithecus africanus?
{{Italictitle}} {{Taxobox |colour = rgb(220,220,183) |name=''Australopithecus africanus'' |fossil_range=[[Pliocene]] |image = Australopithèque Cerveau Double.jpg |image_caption=Natural endocranial cast (485 cm3) (Sts 60), articulated with a fragmentary skull still embedded in breccia (TM 1511) |regnum=[[Animal]]ia |phylum=[[Chordata]] |classis=[[Mammal]]ia |ordo=[[Primate]]s |familia=[[Hominidae]] |genus=†''[[Australopithecus]]'' |binomial=†''Australopithecus africanus'' |binomial_authority=[[Raymond Dart|Dart]], 1925 }} '''''Austalopithecus africanus''''' was first discovered by [[Raymond Dart]] in 1925. He found a well-preserved skull of a young australopithecine, three to four years old. This skull is often called the [[Taung Child]], after Taung, [[South Africa]] where it was found. It is perhaps the most complete skull of ''A. africanus'' known.<ref>Leakey, Richard 1994. ''The origin of humankind''. New York: BasicBooks. {{ISBN|0465031358}}</ref> Based on current data ''A. africanus'' dates to between 3.03 and 2.04 million years ago.<ref>Herries A.I.R. ''et al'' 2010. Geochronology and palaeoenvironments of the South African early hominin bearing sites: a reply to ‘Wrangham et al., 2009: Shallow-water habitats as sources of fallback foods for hominins’ ''Am. J. Phys. Anthro''. '''143''', 640–646</ref> ''Australopithecus africanus'' had a dish shaped facial structure with teeth that were large compared to modern [[human]]s. While it had larger front teeth compared to the back, the emphasis was on back [[tooth]] grinding. Males had a [[sagital]] crest on the tops of their skulls. Large [[muscle]]s were attached to this ridge that helped to support the heavy jaw.<ref>Wood B.A. 1994. Evolution of australopithecines. In Jones S. Martin R. & Pilbeam D. (eds) 2004. ''The Cambridge encyclopedia of human evolution''. 8th ed, Cambridge University Press. {{ISBN|0-521-46786-1}}</ref> ==Related pages== * [[Taung Child]] * [[Human evolution]] == References == {{reflist}} [[Category:Australopithecines]]