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The skull of "Thomai". New studies strengthen the claim that the remains, 7 million years old, indeed belong to the earliest hominid found
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Three years ago, a team of researchers working in Chad found a skull and other bones of a possible human ancestor, who lived seven million years ago - close to the time when the ancestors of humans and chimpanzees separated.
The researchers claimed that the fossils found belonged to the earliest hominid. They called the species "Tomai", a name that means "hope for life" in the language of the place where the remains were found. But other researchers questioned the interpretation of the findings. They argued that the skull was too similar to an ape skull and therefore did not belong to a hominid.
The remains explorers returned to Chad and discovered additional findings - mainly two jaw bones and an upper jaw - which they say confirm their conclusion. In a report on the findings, which appeared in the journal "Nature", the researchers, led by Dr. Michel Brune from the University of Poitiers in France, wrote that there are clear differences between Thomai and African apes. The size of Thomai's brain and the shape of its skull are indeed identical to those of a chimpanzee, but the face And the teeth are more like those of a hominid.
Another research team recreated Thomai's image with the help of a computer. According to the head of the team of researchers, Dr. Christoph Zollikofer from the University of Zurich, the reconstruction confirmed the conclusion that "Thomai is a hominid, which differs in its characteristics from the African apes." Zollikofer's team even claimed that the reconstruction raises the possibility that Thomai walked on two legs.
The new studies did not change the opinion of one of the skeptics, Dr. Martin Pickford of the National Museum of Nature in Paris. "What we are saying is that it was an ape-like animal," Pickford told the BBC. "It may have led to bipedal hominids, But she wasn't like that."
Dr. Ian Tattersall, a fossil anthropologist at the American Museum of Nature, said that due to the poor preservation of the remains, there will continue to be doubt about the species they represented. He added that he supports the hypothesis that it is a hominid, but "looks forward to further research in Chad, which may yield remains in good condition better."
The knowledge of evolution - the human elite
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