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About 3.6 million years ago, three early hominids were walking across the plains of what is now known as Laetoli in East Africa when the volcano Sadiman erupted, showering the earth with ashes. A light rain was falling at the same time, and as the hominids continued to walk, each footprint they made was cast into the mixture of muddy ash. When the impressions later dried, the result was two rows of footprints; apparently, two of the hominids walked side by side, the third, perhaps a juvenile, trailed behind the one on the right, stepping in the footprints of his predecessor. |
3,000 Million BC. Life Begins on Earth
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130,000,000 BC. Birds & Mammals appear |
Location: East Africa, Northern India, Europe.
Ancestor of Hominids & Great Apes
The original home of early hominids was equatorial Africa. Unlike the tree-living apes, these creatures took to the ground, presumably in search of food. It marked a decisive step in human evolution. Travelling upright, early had was free to use his hands for new purposes, eg; to make and use tool & weapons. Besides manual dexterity, the other deciding factor of this era ofevolution is the massive increase in brain volume.
Location: Africa & Northern India.
Earliest known biped.
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3 million BC. g. Australopithecus Location: Southern Africa. Two distinct species. Human-like hominids. "Lucy." Basic traits of humans. Special because he could stand up. Main physical difference between early man and apes are the hands. a. Robustus a. Africanus |
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1.5 million BC. g. Homo Erectus Location: "Upright Man" Made and controlled fire. The first hunters. Traveled over land bridges from Africa, to begin to populate the world, about 1 million years ago |
The evidence of fossil remaims at the University of Texas website.
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