Access

Article

Nature 371, 306-312 (22 September 1994) | doi:10.1038/371306a0; Accepted 17 August 1994

Australopithecus ramidus, a new species of early hominid from Aramis, Ethiopia

Tim D. White*, Gen Suwa† & Berhane Asfaw‡

  1. *Laboratory for Human Evolutionary Studies, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, USA
  2. †Department of Anthropology, University of Tokyo, Bunkyo-Ku, Hongo, Tokyo 113, Japan
  3. ‡Ethiopian Ministry of Culture and Sports Affairs, Paleoanthropology Laboratory, PO Box 5717, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Top

Seventeen hominoid fossils recovered from Pliocene strata at Aramis, Middle Awash, Ethiopia make up a series comprising dental, cranial and postcranial specimens dated to around 4.4 million years ago. When compared with Australopithecus afarensis and with modern and fossil apes the Aramis fossil hominids are recognized as a new species of Australopithecus—A. ramidus sp. nov. The antiquity and primitive morphology of A. ramidus suggests that it represents a long-sought potential root species for the Hominidae.