| These bones were made for jogging |
that anatomical markers in the lower limb that
studies could instead be markers of increased
walking ability instead of running behaviours.
Including other skeletal elements in the analysis may
describe several other skeletal features in the upper
segment of the skeleton, such as the restructuring
of the shoulders and thorax, and the shortening of
the forearms, that according to the authors are solely
skeletal features are related to trunk stabilisation
and redistribution of the centre of gravity during
running (Bramble and Lieberman 2004, 349).
touches the ground, which would require greater
control of balance than bipedal walking (Levine et
al 2012, 57). However, these features may also be
not only identify the presence of these features in
the fossil hominin record, but also test their validity
skeletal markers, Bramble and Lieberman (2004,
348) list a number of soft tissue features, such as the
increased size of the gluteus maximus, the erector
spinae, and the presence of the nuchal ligament.
Ascertaining the effect of differences in size of
muscle insertions related to habitual running may
provide additional skeletal markers to examine in
the future.
Apart from the skeletal features described above as
indicators of endurance running, several other lines
of evidence also contradict that endurance running
evolution of later Homo species. Before 400,000
years ago (Shea 2006, 823), there is no evidence
of projectile weaponry, which would be necessary
to initially injure the animal before running it into
overheating (Pickering and Bunn 2007, 436). If
Homo erectus did not have the technological means
anatomical traits evolved to support this behaviour.
This behaviour is also rarely seen in hunter-gatherers
today (Pickering and Bunn 2007, 436) and less
would also require the ability to track prey across
large distances. Pickering and Bunn (2007, 435) note
that the savannah-woodland environment in which
these hominins lived, which was characterised by
dense soil and vegetation covered ground, was ill-
suited for tracking prey across large distances as
these environmental conditions are not optimal for
leaving tracks.
early as 1.7 million years ago, hominins migrated
out of Africa (Dennell and Roebroeks 2005, 1099;
Lordkipanidze et al. 2007, 307). These hominins do
not yet have all the features necessary for endurance
running. For example, the morphology of the
longitudinal arch of the Dmansi hominins does not
yet resemble that of modern humans and may have
(Lordkipanidze et al. 2007, 307; Pontzer et al. 2010,
has
elongated toes, but a bipedally adapted lower limb.
This elongation of the toe is puzzling, as this species
is thought to be younger than Homo erectus. This
elongation may represent an evolutionary reversal.
However, it is unlikely that a feature so vital to
running were able to disperse across Eurasia,
contrary to Bramble and Lieberman’s (2004, 351;
Lieberman et al. 2006, 78) belief that running and
persistence hunting would be necessary to achieve
this.
Conclusion
The aim of this study was to assess whether new
fossil evidence discovered over the past decade
could shed new light on the appearance of the
anatomical features related to endurance running.
Although limited to the lower-limb, this study cannot
corroborate Bramble and Lieberman’s conclusion
that these features evolved for endurance running
around 1.8 million years ago with the appearance of
Homo erectus. The skeletal features discussed in this
with exception of the calcaneal tuber, these features
study suggest that endurance running may have
been practiced from 1.8 million years onwards, but
the earlier presence of many of these features in the
fossil record suggest that endurance running most
likely was not a driving force behind the evolution
of these anatomical features. Furthermore, the
lack of lithic evidence for persistence hunting
associated with early Homo and the primitive
morphology of the Dmanisi and
lower-limb indicate that early Homo travelled long
distances before the evolution of all features related
to endurance running occurred. The most likely
scenario at this time seems to be that the lower limb
features discussed here evolved to improve walking
product. Further analyses should focus on testing
2017 | INTER-SECTION | VOL III | p.11