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The genus Paranthropus (otherwise known as "robust australopithecines", in contrast to the "gracile australopithecines") now also includes the East African P. boisei and P. aethiopicus. It is still debated if this is a valid natural grouping ( monophyletic ) or an invalid grouping of similar-looking hominins ( paraphyletic ).
Members of Australopithecus are sometimes referred to as the "gracile australopithecines", while Paranthropus are called the "robust australopithecines". [ 11 ] [ 12 ] The australopithecines occurred in the Late Miocene sub-epoch and were bipedal , and they were dentally similar to humans, but with a brain size not much larger than that of ...
The robust Paranthropus boisei (left) vs the gracile A. anamensis (right) Australopithecus species are thought to have eaten mainly fruit, vegetables, and tubers, and perhaps easy-to-catch animals such as small lizards.
They are also referred to as the robust australopithecines. They lived between approximately 2.9 and 1.2 million years ago (mya) from the end of the Pliocene to the Middle Pleistocene . Paranthropus is characterised by robust skulls , with a prominent gorilla -like sagittal crest along the midline—which suggest strong chewing muscles—and ...
The term gracile [6] —and its opposite, robust [7] —occur in discussion of the morphology of various hominids for example. The gracile fasciculus is a particular bundle of axon fibres in the spinal cord; The gracile nucleus is a particular structure of neurons in the medulla oblongata "GRACILE syndrome", is associated with a BCS1L mutation
A further division of AMH into "early" or "robust" vs. "post-glacial" or "gracile" subtypes has since been used for convenience. The emergence of "gracile AMH" is taken to reflect a process towards a smaller and more fine-boned skeleton beginning around 50,000–30,000 years ago. [97]
P. boisei is the most robust of the robust australopithecines, whereas the South African P. robustus is smaller with comparatively more gracile features. [ 15 ] : 120 The P. boisei skull is heavily built, and features a defined brow ridge , receding forehead, rounded bottom margins of the eye sockets , inflated and concave cheek bones , a thick ...
A sagittal crest is a ridge of bone running lengthwise along the midline of the top of the skull (at the sagittal suture) of many mammalian and reptilian skulls, among others. The presence of this ridge of bone indicates that there are exceptionally strong jaw muscles.