Name: ____________________________ Section: _________________

ANTHROPOLOGY 213 – HUMAN ORIGINS

Lab 6 – Comparative Hominin Anatomy

The focus of this lab is gracile and robust Australopithecines and early Homo. The genus
Homo emerges approximately 2.4 mya and as we will see these fossils possess both
ancestral and derived morphological traits. Much of this information is covered in
Chapters 11-13 of your textbook.

In this lab you will examine and compare the following labeled specimens:
Chimp
Paranthropus aethiopicus
Paranthropus bosei
Australopithecus afarensis
Australopithecus africanus
Homo habilis
Homo erectus
Homo sapiens

Station 1: Gracile v. Robust Australopithecines (1 point)

The subfamily Australopiths contains a gracile group (Australopithecines) and a robust
group (Paranthropus). Some researchers today believe these two genuses to be one in the
same, Australopithecines. These groups are differentiated based on variation in their
cranial and dental morphology.

Complete the following table comparing the crania of these different species:
A. afarensis P. boisei P. aethiopithecus
Cranial cresting S S S
(sagittal and nuchal)
N N N
Degree of
prognathism
(1=most, 3=least)
Size of teeth
(larger v. smaller)

Overall robusticity
(rank: 1=most robust,
3=least)

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Station 2: Australopith Mandibular Anatomy (1 point)

Compare the mandibles of each species:

A. afarenesis P. boisei Chimps H. sapiens
Dental arcade
shape (U-shaped
v. parabolic)
Canine size
(small v. large)

Presence/absence
of chin

Robust or gracile

Station 3: Australopithecines and Homo (1 point)

The focus of this station is to compare the differences between the australopithecines and
Homo habilis.

Complete the following table regarding the similarities and differences between the H.
habilis and A. africanus crania:
A. africanus H. habilis
Cranial breadth
(wider v. more narrow)

Degree of prognathism
(more v. less)

Foramen magnum
(anterior v. posterior)

Postorbital constriction
(more v. less)

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Station 4: Paranthropus and Homo (1 point)

The focus of this station is to compare the crania of the Paranthropus (robust
australopithecines) and early Homo.

Paranthropus H. habilis H. erectus

Presence/absence of a
sagittal crest

Size of the teeth

(bigger v. smaller)

Mid-facial features
(zygomatics/cheekbones;
flared v. less flared)

Degree of post-orbital
constriction
(1=most, 3=least)

Station 5: Early Homo v. modern Homo sapiens (1 point)

Compare the crania of the species and record the relative differences revealed in your
observations on the table below:
H. habilis H. erectus H. sapiens

Supraorbital
torus/brow ridge
(1=most, 3=least)
Degree of
prognathism
(1=most, 3=least)
Cranial capacity
(1=greatest, 3=least)

Describe overall
shape and size of
cranial vault

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Discussion questions:
6. What do the cranial and dental differences between the Australopithecine and
Paranthropus specimens suggest to you about the different subsistence strategies of these
groups? (2 points)

7. Based on morphological and temporal (time period) comparisons, can P. boisei, or any
Paranthropus be ancestral to the genus Homo? Why or why not? (2 points)

8. Based on morphology and temporal comparisons, discuss the similarities and

differences between H. habilis and H. erectus? (1 point)