A new study published on the prestigious magazine Science revealed that theAustralopithecoone of the first human ancestors,, as previously hypothesized. Thanks to achemical analysis of the email dental ** of seven individuals lived between 3,7 and 3.3 million years ago In South Africa, the researchers found that their diet was mainly vegetablesimilar to that of modern herbivores.
This discovery denies the hypothesis That the meat played a central role in the early stages of human evolution and raises new questions on the exact moment when our lineage started consuming animal proteins significantly.
A herbivorous diet that challenges the theories on brain development
Second Tina Lüdeckegeochemistry of the Max Planck institute for chemistry, the meat is traditionally considered a key factor in the evolution of the human brainthanks to his wealth of proteins, iron and essential vitamins. However, this new research shows that the first hominins, suggesting that the human brain has developed initially without a large contribution of meat in the diet.
Scientists believe that the first Australopitechi feeds mainly of fruits, leaves, bark, roots and seedswith a diet more similar to that of some primates today such as chimpanzees. Only with the arrival of Homo Habilis and, subsequently, of Homo erectusthe meat would have assumed a more significant role, perhaps thanks to the invention of tools to hunt and the ability to cook food.
The isotopic analysis confirms a diet similar to that of herbivores
To check this theory, the research team analyzed the nitrogen and carbon isotopes present in the dental enamel of the Australopitechi. Isotopes are chemical elements that accumulate in the teeth and bones according to the individual’s diet.
By comparing the results with those of carnivorous animals, herbivores and omnivores lived in the same ecosystem, the researchers found that the isotopes’ values in the Australopitechi were much more similar to those of herbivores. This confirms that, but they fed mainly of plants.
Implications for human evolution
This discovery changes our vision on the origins of the human diet and suggests that the transition to consumption of meat occurred later in the evolution, perhaps because of environmental changes and competition for resources.
Some scholars hypothesize that it was precisely the climate change To push the hominins towards a more varied diet, including meat, insects and tubers rich in starch. This may have favored the development of the brain and the expansion of cognitive skillsbut in a subsequent phase compared to the Australopitechi.
The study questioned one of the most widespread theories on human evolution: the one that directly binds the consumption of meat toIncrease in the size of the brain. The Australopitechi, despite having lived millions of years before Homo Sapiens, show that our ancestors they could survive and develop with a mainly vegetable diet.
This discovery opens new questions: When and why did the hominine started eating meat significantly? And what impact did you really have on the evolution of our brain?
The next studies could provide even more detailed answers on this fascinating chapter of our evolutionary history.
