Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Letter
  • Published:

Fossil hominid body weight and brain size

Abstract

RELIABLE estimates of body weights in early hominids are essential to the study of their brains and body proportions1. Obviously the evolution of the size of the human brain must be studied in terms of the size of the body. Although the endocranial volume is known for many individual fossil hominids, body weight is poorly known. The present study is an attempt to estimate body weight of the South African Plio-Pleistocene hominids as accurately as possible from the available fossil evidence. East African early hominid postcrania are excluded because of the difficulty in taxonomic assessment, especially within the genus Australopithecus.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Pilbeam, D., and Gould, S. J., Science, 186, 892–901 (1974).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. Genet-Varcin, E., Bull. Soc. préhist. fr., 64, CVI–CVII (1966).

    Google Scholar 

  3. McHenry, H. M., Am. J. phys. Anthrop., 40, 329–340 (1974).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Wolpoff, M. H., Am. J. phys. Anthrop., 39, 375–394 (1973).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Robinson, J. T., Early Hominid Posture and Locomotion (University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 1972).

    Google Scholar 

  6. Robinson, J. T., Nature, 225, 1217–1219 (1970).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Lovejoy, C. O., Heiple, K. G., and Burstein, A. H., Am. J. phys. Anthrop., 38, 757–790 (1973).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Martin, R., and Saller, K., Lehrbuch der Anthropologie (Fischer, Stuttgart, 1957.)

    Google Scholar 

  9. Wolpoff, M. H., Case Western Reserve University Studies in Anthropology, No. 2 (1971).

    Google Scholar 

  10. Holloway, R. L., Nature, 227, 199–200 (1970).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Jerison, H. J., Science, 170, 1224–1225 (1970); Evolution of the Brain and Intelligence (Academic Press, New York, 1973).

    Google Scholar 

  12. Leutenegger, W., Folia Primat., 19, 9–17 (1973).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Bauchot, R., and Stephan, H., Mammalia, 30, 160–196 (1966); 33, 225–275 (1969).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Stephan, H., in The Functional and Evolutionary Biology of Primates (edit. by Tuttle, R.), (Aldine–Atherton, Chicago, 1972).

    Google Scholar 

  15. Hemmer, H., Proc. Third Int. Congr. Primatol., 1, 99–107 (1971).

    Google Scholar 

  16. Jerison, H. J., Hum. Biol., 35, 263–291 (1963).

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  17. Holloway, R. L., Am. Anthropol., 68, 103–121 (1966); Brain Res., 7, 121–172 (1968); in Functional and Evolutionary Biology of Primates (edit. by Tuttle R.), (Aldine–Atherton, Chicago, 1972).

    Google Scholar 

  18. Tobias, P. V., Brain in Hominid Evolution (Columbia University Press, New York, 1971).

    Google Scholar 

  19. Holloway, R. L., Scient. Am., 231, 106–115 (1974); J. Hum. Evol., 2, 449–459 (1973).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  20. Darwin, C., Descent of Man and Selection in Relation to Sex (Appleton, New York, 1872).

    Google Scholar 

  21. Haeckel, E., History of Creation (Appleton, New York, 1876).

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

MCHENRY, H. Fossil hominid body weight and brain size. Nature 254, 686–688 (1975). https://doi.org/10.1038/254686a0

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/254686a0

This article is cited by

Comments

By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.

Search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing