HOMINID SERIES
Lesson Plan
Skullduggery, Inc. • 624 South B Street • Tustin, CA 92680 • (800) 336-7745 • FAX (714) 832-1215
HOMINIDS
OBJECTIVE
The hominid set provides an opportunity for an up close, hands on look at the
major stages of human evolution. When finished, students should be able to (1)
identify the cranial structure for each member of the evolutionary chain, (2)
understand the timeline involved in human evolution and (3) comprehend some of
the physical and social aspects of these ancient creatures’ lives.
MATERIALS PROVIDED
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General information on the relationship between members of the evolutionary
chain
Specific information on each member of the evolutionary chain
Hominid exercise sheet
5 hominid cranium replicas and 1 human skull replica
• Australopithecus afarensis Cranium Replica
• Australopithecus africanus Cranium Replica
• Homo habilis Cranium Replica
• Homo erectus Cranium Replica
• Neandertal Cranium Replica
• Human Skull Replica
Suggested reading list
© Copyright 1996 Skullduggery, Inc.
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Hominids
HOMINID SERIES INSTRUCTIONS & EXERCISES
A. Divide your class into six groups.
1. Read the general information on hominids out loud to your class.
2. Pass out a cranium replica, the corresponding written information and an
exercise sheet to each group.
3. Ask each group to examine their replica. Have students pay close
attention to its shape and feel.
4. Without reading the specific information on their replica, ask them to fill
out as much of the exercise sheet as possible. Challenge them to infer as
much as possible from just examining their replica. (There is no
corresponding information on the modern human skull. Challenge your
students to fill out the exercise sheet from the knowledge they already
possess.)
5. Allow them to read the information included on their replica and fill in the
areas on their exercise sheet that they were unable to answer.
6. Instruct the groups to swap their replica with a replica they have yet to
study.
7. Repeat steps A1 - A6.
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Hominids
GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT HOMINIDS
Fossil hominid materials found throughout Africa, Asia and Europe are housed in
museums in those respective countries. It is from this multitude of fossil
fragments that noted paleoanthropologists study and accumulate knowledge about
man’s often disputed evolution to modern Homo sapiens. As more hominid fossils
are found, accepted theories concerning the candidates for direct ancestry to the
first hominids are either reinforced or changed. For a variety of reasons,
reconstructions of hominid material are very difficult for the general public to
obtain.
The Skullduggery hominid series was sculpted to provide educators with a visual
comparison between those species thought to be the beginnings of the human race.
From various casts, photographs, published diagrams and text describing hominid
fossil material and their reconstructions, sculptor Larry Williams has created the
hominid series for Skullduggery. Each sculpture exhibits the general
characteristics of its respective species. These sculptures should be used for visual
comparison only, and not for comparing exact measurements among the various
species.
Anthropologists uncover fossil material from the various levels of the Earth’s
strata. The relative age of a fossil can be determined by testing the composition of
mineral deposits absorbed from surrounding soil in which it was found. In many
sites, the deeper stratums contain the older material. Erosion and upheaval of the
Earth’s surface can combine and even overlap these layers, making the
determination of the age of a fossil very difficult. One system used for
determining a more exact age of fossil material is called the radiometric dating
method. This method, along with other new scientific techniques, is used to
pinpoint more closely the date which living material died. As a result of extensive
research and many tests performed on original fossil material, it has been
determined that the first hominid emerged about 4 to 4.5 million years ago. Some
of the fossil finds from that time period indicate that these creatures walked on
two legs (bipedal) instead of four. This characteristic played a large part in
placing these beings in the hominid category.
All fossil hominid material found to date can be placed within two genera, the
genus Australopithecus and the genus Homo. Austalopithecines are thought to
have been small ape-like, bipedal creatures with a small brain and large face and
teeth. There are four species in the genera Australopithecus: two gracile forms, A.
afarensis and A. africanus, and two robust forms, A. boisei and A. robustus. Most
anthropologists agree that the robust Australopithecines, A. boisei and A robustus,
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Hominids
represent two species which became extinct. There is considerable controversy
among anthropologists as to whether to include A. africanus in the direct line of
evolution to Homo or with the two robust species which became extinct. A.
afarensis, the oldest known Australopithecine, was a common ancestor to both
gracile and robustus species.
The first hominid fossil material classified as Homo is dated approximately 2
million years old. Some characteristics which separate the genus Homo from the
genus Australopithecus are the increase in brain size and a reduction in the size of
the face and the teeth. With in the genus Homo there are three species, Homo
habilis, Homo erectus and Homo sapiens. Whether Homo habilis was the direct
ancestor of A. afarensis or A. africanus is still very much debated. While Homo
habilis’ material (2 million years old) was found exclusively in Africa, Homo
erectus material (1.6 million years old) has been unearthed in Asia and Europe as
well. Similarities between later H. erectus and early H. sapiens make it difficult to
pinpoint exactly when the first Homo sapiens appeared. There is definate
evidence that early forms of Homo sapiens existed 200,000 years ago. This early
form of Homo sapiens went through many changes before it had the look of a
truly modern man.
The Neandertal is the earliest and most well known member of Homo sapiens.
The skull of Neandertal has a combination of traits which can be found to some
degree in Homo erectus, including an occipital bun, a very large brain cavity, a
long & protruding face and a large nasal area.
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Hominids
Australopithecus afarensis
“Southern Ape of Afar”
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Existed 3 to 4 million years ago
Sites of fossil discoveries - Laetoli (Tanzania), Hadar (Ethiopia); Koobi Fora
Formation (Kenya)
Endocranial capacity - 400 to 530 cc
Estimated body mass - 37.1 kg
General physical characteristics:
• Small brain
• Large, ape-like face
• Teeth size - smaller than apes, larger than modern man
• Gap between incisors and canines (diastema)
• 3 to 4 feet in height
• Walked on two legs (bipedal)
Evidence suggests that family groups hunted for fibrous fruits and seeds for food.
Although there is no evidence to suggest that A. afarensis used stone tools, it is
quite possible that perishable tools were used, such as wooden sticks for digging.
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Hominids
Australopithecus africanus
“Southern Ape of Africa”
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Existed 2 to 3 million years ago
Sites of fossil discoveries - Makapansgat, Sterkfontein and Taung (South
Africa)
Endocranial capacity - 400 to 530 cc
Estimated body mass - 35.3 kg
General physical characteristics:
• Larger brain when compared to estimated body weight
• Reduced brow ridge
• Reduced prognathism (flatter face)
• No gap in teeth (diastema)
• Larger teeth than modern man
A. Africanus’ diet consisted mainly of fibrous fruits and seeds, however, it has
been suggested that he may have hunted small animals for food, and quite
possibly used very primitive stone tools.
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Hominids
Homo habilis
“Handy Man”
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Existed 1.5 to 2 million years ago
Sites of fossil discoveries - Olduvai Gorge (Tanzania), Koobi Fora (Kenya),
Swartkrans and Sterkfontein (South Africa)
Endocranial capacity - 509 to 810 cc
Estimated body mass - 48 kg
General physical characteristics:
• Larger brain than Australopithecines
• Rounded forehead
• Smaller, more narrow face
• U shaped tooth row
Evidence suggests that Homo habilis was able to make a variety of stone tools.
The constructing of stone tools indicates the first evidence of an adaptive pattern
for problem solving by hominids. Animal bones and stone tools found with Homo
habilis remains suggest that this was a species of scavengers. There is some
evidence which points out that Homo habilis may have occasionally hunted small
game, but none to suggest that it was an organized hunter.
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Hominids
Homo erectus
“Upright Man”
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Existed 200,000 to 1.6 million years ago
Sites of fossil discoveries - Oldavai Gorge (Tanzania); Lake Turkana (Kenya);
Thomas Quarry (North Africa); Montmaurin and Mauer (Western Europe);
Jinniushan, Zhoukoudian, Lantian and Hexian (Indonesia, China and
Southeast Asia)
Endocranial capacity - 727 to 1225 cc
Estimated body mass - 53 kg
General physical characteristics:
• Larger brain than H. habilis, smaller than H. Sapiens
• Flattened forehead
• More prognathism than H. sapiens
• Prominent brow ridges
• Smaller teeth than H. habilis, larger than H. sapiens
Homo erectus was the first hominid to be found outside Africa. The stone tools
found along side remains of Homo erectus were more sophisticated and advanced
than those made by Homo habilis. There is evidence that Homo erectus was a
skilled and organized hunter. Evidence also suggests that Homo erectus used
caves for shelter and made other shelters where caves were not found. There is
sufficient evidence to suggest that Homo erectus existed in small social groups
which banded together for mutual benefit. Homo erectus utilized fire for warmth
and cooking.
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Hominids
Neandertal
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Existed 30,000 to 70,000 years ago
Sites of fossil discoveries - France, Germany, Yugoslavia and Southwest Asia
Endocranial capacity - 1450 cc
Estimated body mass 65 kg
General physical characteristics:
• Large cranial capacity, larger brain than modern Homo sapiens
• Long, low cranium
• Occipital protrusion
• Broad, long nasal opening
• Projecting midface area
Neandertals were quite intelligent. Remains of the European Neandertals indicate
that to survive the harsh winters they lived in caves and very primitive tents made
of animal bones and skin. Evidence of old hearths show that they warmed their
tents and caves by burning wood and bones. There is additional evidence to
suggest that they knew how to start fires by striking sparks from iron pyrites and
using dried bracket fungus as tinder. The Neandertal made primitive clothing out
of animal skin. This clothing possibly included very crude trousers, tunics and
protection for feet. They were the first culture to show evidence of systematic
burials of their dead. There is also some evidence of the beginnings of
rudimentary art forms.
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Hominids
Name
Time Existed
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Physical
Characteristics
Exercise Sheet
Discovery
Sites
Rank
Brain
Size 1-6
Diet
Hominids
Bibliography & Suggested Reading List
Conroy (1990) Primate Evolution. New York: W.W. Norton & Co.
Lambert (1987) The Field Guide to Early Man. New York: Facts on File
Lewin (1987) Bones of Contention. New York: Simon & Schuster
Relethford (1990) The Human Species. Mountainview: Mayfield Publishing Co.
Tattersall, Denton, Van Couvering (1988) Encyclopedia of Human Evolution and
Prehistory. New York & London: Garland Publishing
Educational Kits and Supplies
0200* Contemporary Human Male skull ................ $106.00 Shipping ..... $6.00
0201* Contemporary Human Female skull ............ $106.00 Shipping ..... $6.00
0245* Australopithecus afarensis cranium ............. $106.00 Shipping ..... $6.00
0246* Australopithecus africanus cranium ............. $106.00 Shipping ..... $6.00
0247* Homo habilis cranium .................................. $106.00 Shipping ..... $6.00
0248* Homo erectus cranium .................................. $106.00 Shipping ..... $6.00
0249* Neandertal cranium ...................................... $106.00 Shipping ..... $6.00
0275-3 Fossil Kit I ...................................................... $39.95 Shipping ..... $4.00
0250-3 Fossil Kit II ..................................................... $39.95 Shipping ..... $7.00
0400 Fossilworks (4fossil molds) ............................ $29.95 Shipping ..... $6.00
0400-3 Fossilworks (6 fossil molds) ........................... $39.95 Shipping ..... $8.00
0930-3 Dino Traces, Velociraptor ............................... $39.95 Shipping ..... $8.00
0931-3 Dino Traces, Triceratops ................................. $39.95 Shipping ..... $8.00
0932-3 Dino Traces, Tyrannosaurus rex .....................$39.95 Shipping ..... $8.00
0960-3 Animal Tooth Kit ............................................ $79.95 Shipping ..... $6.00
1001-3 Hydrostone (10 lbs.) ....................................... $10.00 Shipping ..... $8.00
1310-3 Clay (10#, 40 sticks) ....................................... $13.00 Shipping ..... $6.00
*
Oak & Acrylic stand for skulls & craniums ... $25.00 Shipping ..... $7.00
*
If stand included with skull or cranium.......... $25.00 Shipping ..... $1.00
Multiple items are combined for reduced shipping & handling, call for quote.
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Hominids