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Human evolution – hominin skulls, skeletons, stone tools and out of Africa

BiologyEvolutionAges 17–18

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Compare schematic skulls, pelvises and femurs of a chimpanzee and fossil hominins up to Homo sapiens: brain volume, foramen magnum position, brow ridge, jaw and teeth, and the femur angle as evidence for bipedalism. A timeline shows which species lived at the same time, how brain volume changed and the stone-tool industries (Oldowan, Acheulean, Mousterian, Upper Palaeolithic); a tree places humans among the primates, and a map shows Homo erectus and Homo sapiens leaving Africa, with mitochondrial DNA and interbreeding with Neanderthals and Denisovans.

Lesson: Human evolution: hominin fossils, bipedalism, brain size, stone tools and the out-of-Africa model

What it shows

Hominins are humans and their extinct relatives after the split from the chimpanzee lineage about 6–7 million years ago. Fossils show bipedalism first: a foramen magnum under the skull, a short broad pelvis and an angled femur that brings the knees under the body. Brain volume grew later, mainly in the genus Homo, alongside new stone-tool industries. Several species often lived at the same time, so the human family tree is a branching bush. Fossils, mitochondrial DNA and ancient genomes all point to Homo sapiens arising in Africa about 300 000 years ago and spreading worldwide, meeting and interbreeding with Neanderthals and Denisovans.

How to use

In Compare skulls and skeletons, pick a Left and a Right species and choose a feature to Highlight; the table compares every feature. In Timeline, drag across the chart or use the Time slider to see who lived when. In Tree, click a species. In Dispersal map, press Play or move Time, choose what to Show and tap a site to read about it.

Parameters you can change

  • Screen Compare skulls and skeletons, Timeline, Family tree, Dispersal map
  • Species on the left Chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes), Australopithecus afarensis, Paranthropus boisei, Homo habilis, Homo erectus, Homo heidelbergensis, Homo neanderthalensis (Neanderthal), Homo sapiens (modern human)
  • Species on the right Chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes), Australopithecus afarensis, Paranthropus boisei, Homo habilis, Homo erectus, Homo heidelbergensis, Homo neanderthalensis (Neanderthal), Homo sapiens (modern human)
  • Feature to highlight All, Brain volume, Foramen magnum, Face, jaw and teeth, Pelvis, Femur angle
  • Time on the timeline and map 10–7000 thousand years ago
  • Timeline range Last 7 million years, Last 2 million years, Last 500 000 years
  • Groups shown on the map All, Homo erectus and early hominins, Neanderthals and Denisovans, Homo sapiens
  • Show interbreeding and gene flow

Questions to explore

  1. Which skull and pelvis features show that Australopithecus afarensis walked on two legs?
  2. Why is human evolution described as a branching bush rather than a ladder?
  3. How do mitochondrial DNA and Neanderthal DNA support the out-of-Africa model?

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