{"id":{"repo_id":"wustl","oai_identifier":"oai:openscholarship.wustl.edu:etd-1021"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/wustl/oai:openscholarship.wustl.edu:etd-1021","repository":{"repo_id":"wustl","name":"Washington University in St. Louis","base_url":"https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/do/oai/"},"display":{"title":"The Makapansgat Hominins: A Descriptive and Comparative Morphological Study","abstract":"The primary focus of this thesis is to extensively describe the cranial, mandibular, and dental specimens from Makapansgat and to compare the assemblage to other South African early hominin samples. The fossils examined here include previously undescribed fossils from the fossiliferous ex-situ breccia piles of the Makapansgat Limeworks. Data analyses incorporated extant humans, gorillas, chimpanzees, and macaques to provide a comparative base with which to discuss intraspecific and interspecific variation in currently recognized taxa of South African <italic>Australopithecus<italic>. Results support previous assertions that the Makapansgat specimens share morphological similarities with both <italic>Australopithecus africanus<italic> and <italic>Australopithecus robustus<italic> and that these taxa exhibit considerable overlap in variation. The Makapansgat hominins are distinct in some features, but several competing scenarios are viable. These results are discussed in light of current knowledge and phylogenetic hypotheses for South African early hominin evolution. A taxonomic distinction for the Makapansgat hominins: <italic>A. prometheus<italic>) is not recommended due to limitations of the small sample. However, these hominins compose the earliest known South African hominin sample and contribute a critical geographic and temporal element, as well as a biologically meaningful and unique pattern of morphological variation, for early hominin studies.","abstract_html":"The primary focus of this thesis is to extensively describe the cranial, mandibular, and dental specimens from Makapansgat and to compare the assemblage to other South African early hominin samples. The fossils examined here include previously undescribed fossils from the fossiliferous ex-situ breccia piles of the Makapansgat Limeworks. Data analyses incorporated extant humans, gorillas, chimpanzees, and macaques to provide a comparative base with which to discuss intraspecific and interspecific variation in currently recognized taxa of South African &lt;italic&gt;Australopithecus&lt;italic&gt;. Results support previous assertions that the Makapansgat specimens share morphological similarities with both &lt;italic&gt;Australopithecus africanus&lt;italic&gt; and &lt;italic&gt;Australopithecus robustus&lt;italic&gt; and that these taxa exhibit considerable overlap in variation. The Makapansgat hominins are distinct in some features, but several competing scenarios are viable. These results are discussed in light of current knowledge and phylogenetic hypotheses for South African early hominin evolution. A taxonomic distinction for the Makapansgat hominins: &lt;italic&gt;A. prometheus&lt;italic&gt;) is not recommended due to limitations of the small sample. However, these hominins compose the earliest known South African hominin sample and contribute a critical geographic and temporal element, as well as a biologically meaningful and unique pattern of morphological variation, for early hominin studies.","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Arbor, Tafline"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)","degree_level":"Dissertation","degree_discipline":"Anthropology","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Glenn Conroy"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2010,"date_issued":"2010-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2010-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T06:13:23Z","subjects":["Anthropology","Physical","A. africanus","A. robustus","Australopithecus","Human evolution","Makapansgat","morphometric"],"languages":["English (en)"],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier.doi","label":"DOI","values":["https://doi.org/10.7936/K7H70CS5"],"render_values":[{"text":"https://doi.org/10.7936/K7H70CS5","href":"https://doi.org/10.7936/K7H70CS5","code":true}]}]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/etd/22","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Glenn Conroy"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Arbor, Tafline"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2010-01-01T08:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Anthropology"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Dissertation"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Anthropology","Physical","A. africanus","A. robustus","Australopithecus","Human evolution","Makapansgat","morphometric"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language","label":"Dc Language","values":["English (en)"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/etd/22"]},{"key":"dc:identifier.doi","label":"DOI","values":["https://doi.org/10.7936/K7H70CS5"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["The primary focus of this thesis is to extensively describe the cranial, mandibular, and dental specimens from Makapansgat and to compare the assemblage to other South African early hominin samples. The fossils examined here include previously undescribed fossils from the fossiliferous ex-situ breccia piles of the Makapansgat Limeworks. Data analyses incorporated extant humans, gorillas, chimpanzees, and macaques to provide a comparative base with which to discuss intraspecific and interspecific variation in currently recognized taxa of South African <italic>Australopithecus<italic>. Results support previous assertions that the Makapansgat specimens share morphological similarities with both <italic>Australopithecus africanus<italic> and <italic>Australopithecus robustus<italic> and that these taxa exhibit considerable overlap in variation. The Makapansgat hominins are distinct in some features, but several competing scenarios are viable. These results are discussed in light of current knowledge and phylogenetic hypotheses for South African early hominin evolution. A taxonomic distinction for the Makapansgat hominins: <italic>A. prometheus<italic>) is not recommended due to limitations of the small sample. However, these hominins compose the earliest known South African hominin sample and contribute a critical geographic and temporal element, as well as a biologically meaningful and unique pattern of morphological variation, for early hominin studies."]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["The Makapansgat Hominins: A Descriptive and Comparative Morphological Study"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Glenn Conroy"],"dc:creator":["Arbor, Tafline"],"dc:date.available":["2010-01-01T08:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["The primary focus of this thesis is to extensively describe the cranial, mandibular, and dental specimens from Makapansgat and to compare the assemblage to other South African early hominin samples. The fossils examined here include previously undescribed fossils from the fossiliferous ex-situ breccia piles of the Makapansgat Limeworks. Data analyses incorporated extant humans, gorillas, chimpanzees, and macaques to provide a comparative base with which to discuss intraspecific and interspecific variation in currently recognized taxa of South African <italic>Australopithecus<italic>. Results support previous assertions that the Makapansgat specimens share morphological similarities with both <italic>Australopithecus africanus<italic> and <italic>Australopithecus robustus<italic> and that these taxa exhibit considerable overlap in variation. The Makapansgat hominins are distinct in some features, but several competing scenarios are viable. These results are discussed in light of current knowledge and phylogenetic hypotheses for South African early hominin evolution. 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