The Earth has 4.6 billion years history. However, Archaic Home Sapiens(Modern Human had evolved around between 400,000 and 250,000 years ago. Human evolved from the family Hominid(great apes), that existed in the earth around 20 million years ago. Unlike today there were different human species that existed on the earth. The characteristics between these human species are however different. Not all specifies of human survive through the journey, many of them extinct. The only species left in the human race is our ancestors.
The possibility of human linking to the apes came after publication of the Charles Darwin’s On the origin of species in 1859. He first pointed out that, the every species is emerged from earlier ones. Later, the two scientist Thoman Huley and Richard Owen supported him. Huxley published a book in 1863 called the Evidence as to Man’s place in Nature. Even though there was several view and theories by various scientist, the major problem was the proof – the lack of fossil intermediaries. Eugene Dubois discovered the first finding and proved that there was a species between human and apes in 1891 at Trinil. He proclaimed his finding as Pithecanthropus erectus or Java man. Today, they are classified at Homo erectus (“human that stand uprights). In 1920, the fossils were discovered in the Africa. The study of evolution of Human begin afterwards. Here is the list of 7 Homo species that existed in the Earth through out the history.
7. Homo Heidelbergensis
Homo heidelbergensis lived on the earth around 700,000 to 200,000 years ago.They emerged from the Africa. Heidelbergensis male was about 175cm in height and around 136 lbs weight, whereas female average height is 157 cm and 112 lbs. weight. They had a large brain case with a flatter face than that today’s human. They were the first human species that were adaptable in living in colder climates. They were also widely known for their ability to hunt large animals, which was not seen in the human species before them. They were the first human species to build their own shelter for living.
Their first fossil was discovered on October 21, 1907 by a worker. The workman hand it over to the professor Otto Schoetensack from the University of Heidelberg, who later identified and named the fossil.
6. Homo Rudolfensis
Homo Rudolfensis is another debatable extinct species that falls under Hominin category. The believed to be lived around 1.9 million to 1.8 million years ago. Their physical structure like weight and height is still unknown due to the lack of post cranial fossils.
Meave Leakey’s team announce that discovery of a face and two jawbones belongs to Homo Rudolfensis on 8 August 2012. The fossil known as KNM-ER 1470 was the center of the debate. It was first stated to be around 3 million years old. However, later it was corrected to be 1.9 million years. The difference in the skull from other Homo Habilis species created a new species named Homo Rudolfensis.
There are the certain features of the ER 1470 that depicts that it’s not different from the other Homo species like the lack of heavy muscle and crests like of australopithecine crania, occipital smoothly rounded bone like Homo erectus and more. However other key features suggest that, they are different from other Homo species like much longer faces with upper part narrower than the middle, much more Megadont Postcanines etc.
5. Homo Abilis
Homo Habilis was another species of the Hominin tribe who lived on the earth from 2.4 to 1.4 million years ago. Homo Habilis possess some of the apes like features like long arms and a moderately prognathic face. They have a larger brain case from the range of 550 cm to 687 cm. However, they have smaller face and teeth. There was controversial debate of classifying it as a Homo since it have very little characteristics like other homo. The scientist discovered that they had capacity to use stool tools for various purposes.
There are three key fossils available of Homo Habilis: KNM-ER 1813, OH 24, OH 8. The first fossil was found by the team of the two scientist Louis and Mary Leakey at Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania in 1960’s.
4. Homo Floresiensis
Homo Floresiensis was believed to be lived from 95,000 to 17,000 years ago in Indonesia. They were quite small is size around 3.5 feet tall with a tiny brain. There is a evidence, that Homo floresiensis made a small stone tools and used to hunt small elephants and large rodents.
The key fossils of Homo Floresiensis was found in 2003 in Indonesia and name LB-1. The female head was 1/3 size of the current brain of the human. Perhaps their small body made them to survive in the small island with limited resources.
3. Homo erectus
Homo erectus was an extinct species of early human that lived throughout the Pleistocene from around 1.9 million years to most recent 143,000 years ago. The study of the fossil, discovered by scientists proved that, Homo erectus was originated in Africa and spread through the India, China, Georgia and Java.
First Erectus fossil was discovered from java, Dutch East Indies (present Australia) in the early 1890’s by Eugène Dubois, Homo erectus were generally in the range of 4 ft 9 inch to 6ft 1 inch with a weight around 88 to 150 lbs. There height and weight were different from the fossils founds in different part of the world. The fossils from Africa had a larger body size than those of Indonesia, china and Georgia. Their long elongated leg and short arms help them to climb tree easily and run faster than the present human beings.
2. Homo Neanderthals
Neanderthal was an extinct species of human with a closest specification like modern human. Their DNA is just 0.12% different than modern human. The Neanderthal was believed to be existed around 600,000 to 350,000 years ago. Neanderthal lived through Europe and southwestern to central Asia. Neanderthals had most of the features like the modern humans. They used different tools for hunting. They used to wear the symbolic ornamental objects. There is an evidence that they used to mark buried death bodies with offering like flowers. There were earlier human species that used to practice such symbolic behavior.
The study of the scientist states that the Neanderthal brain and modern human brain and similar during the birth. However, during the adulthood, their brain became larger. They were stronger than modern human with a huge body size; Male (164-168 cm) and female (152-256 cm)
1. Homo sapiens
Homo sapiens are the ancestor of the modern human. Most of the species that ever existed on the earth extinct during the climate change process. However, Homo sapiens live together, hunted food and evolved themselves in such an extent, that they can cope with the changes that occurred on the earth. Besides hunting, they discovered the breeding of certain plants and animals, which change the history forever. As soon as they learn to produce more food, they ate a variety of animal and food plants. Their control over fire and their ability to living in the larger group created the concept of better shelters.
Scientist had found the various fossils ,that have a strong evidence that Homo sapiens existed. The oldest known fossils were discovered in Herto, Ethiopia. The researcher from the University of California found the skulls of two adults and a child, which was around 160,000 to 40,000 years earlier.
