The Miocene era was a period
of change. The continents moved, the Earth cooled, and grasslands
expanded. Early hominoid fossils were only found in Africa, as it
was originally not connected to the other continents. Later, a land
bridge formed and hominoids moved through the Arabian Peninsula into
Eurasia then on into western Europe and China. Some also traveled
into North America. Although there is fossil evidence to support
these travels, there are very few fossils from the later years of
this period. The lack of fossils make it difficult for
anthropologists to decipher which may be the last common ancestor of
African apes and humans. (Anthro 107)
During this tumultuous
time, many species became extinct. Due to the climate changes,
grasslands expanded across forest dominated areas, along with a new
cilica-rich grass which was weeded out many herbivores who had
difficulty eating the hardier grasses. (Miocene) One adaptation by
hominoids was found in the species Proconsul heseloni. The Proconsul
heseloni was a tree-dwelling proto-ape with a skeletal structure was
a mixture of modern and old world. (Anthro 107)
Lavenda,
Robert H., and Emily A. Schultz. "Primates of the
Miocene." Anthropology:
What Does It Mean to Be Human? New
York: Oxford UP, 2013. N. 107. Print.
"Miocene." Wikipedia.
Wikimedia Foundation, 29 Sept. 2013. Web. 08 Oct. 2013.
No comments:
Post a Comment