Little foot Australopithecus, illustration. Little Foot is a nearly complete fossil skeleton found in the Sterkfontein Caves in South Africa between 1994 and 1998. Excavations took 20 years as the skeleton was completely embedded in hard rock. The skeleton belonged to an elderly female that was about 130 centimetres tall. The lower limbs were longer than the upper limbs, as in modern humans, suggesting that it was becoming better at walking upright. There is controversy surrounding whether Little Foot is a new species, named Australopithecus prometheus, or an example of A. africanus. The most recent dating puts the fossil at 3.6 million years old, although previously it has been put at between 3.5 to 2 million years old. | |
Lizenzart: | Lizenzpflichtig |
Credit: | Science Photo Library / JOHN BAVARO FINE ART |
Bildgröße: | 3768 px × 4729 px |
Modell-Rechte: | nicht erforderlich |
Eigentums-Rechte: | nicht erforderlich |
Restrictions: | - |