A foot fossil suggests a second early human relative lived alongside Lucy
Foot bones and other fossils have been attributed to Australopithecus deyiremeda, a recently discovered species that may shake up the human family tree.
Citations
Y. Haile-Selassie et al. New finds shed light on diet and locomotion in Australopithecus deyiremeda. Nature. Published online November 26, 2025. doi: 10.1038/s41586-025-09714-4.
L.J. Hlusko et al. Taxonomic assignments for the 3.4 Ma to 1.1 Ma hominin postcanine teeth from the Usno Formation and the Shungura Formation, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia. PaleoarXiv. Posted June 12, 2024. https://osf.io/preprints/paleorxiv/g7kfx_v4.
Y. Haile-Selassie et al. New species from Ethiopia further expands Middle Pliocene hominin diversity. Nature. Vol. 521, May 28, 2015, p. 483. doi:10.1038/nature14448.
Y. Haile-Selassie et al. A new hominin foot from Ethiopia shows multiple Pliocene bipedal adaptations. Nature. Vol. 483, March 29, 2012, p. 565. doi:10.1038/nature10922.
Jay Bennett is a writer based in Copenhagen who covers space, dinosaurs and rocks, among other things. He previously worked as a science editor at National Geographic, Smithsonian and Popular Mechanics.
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