A groundbreaking discovery in Ethiopia has revealed a previously unknown species in the human evolutionary lineage. Researchers uncovered 13 fossilized teeth—10 from a new species of Australopithecus and three belonging to the earliest known member of the genus Homo, the lineage of modern humans. Dated to around 2.65 million years ago, the fossils suggest these two species coexisted in the Afar Region, possibly competing for resources. This challenges the idea of a linear evolutionary path, instead highlighting a complex “twiggy tree” of multiple hominins living side-by-side. The find adds to the region’s rich fossil history, which includes “Lucy,” and underscores just how intricate—and crowded—our evolutionary journey truly was.
Reuters
