小柯机器人

科学家发现三百万年前的人类颅骨化石
2019-08-29 13:22

美国克利夫兰自然历史博物馆的Yohannes Haile-Selassie研究团队发现来自埃塞俄比亚Woranso-Mille上新世中期人骨的年龄和背景。2019年8月28日,《自然》在线发表了这一成果。

研究人员在埃塞俄比亚Woranso-Mille西北研究区的Godaya山谷的上新世三角洲地层中发现了人类化石颅骨。通过化学相关火山层和古地磁地层学的分析,并结合年龄测定凝灰岩的贝叶斯模型,研究人员认为三角洲地层和化石的年龄范围在3.804±0.013至3.777±0.014百万年(平均值±1σ)。研究人还记录了三角洲下多年生湖泊的沉积物。与颅相关的哺乳动物化石代表当时广泛存在的分类群,来自植物遗骸的数据表明,湖泊和三角洲集水区的植被主要是不同比例的干灌木丛、草地、湿地和河岸森林。

此外,研究人员还发现沉积物积累的高速率和沉积特征(即典型的陡峭的地形起伏,并与年轻的Woranso-Mille化石地区不同),这些反映了活跃的裂谷过程对古地貌的影响。

附:英文原文

Title: Age and context of mid-Pliocene hominin cranium from Woranso-Mille, Ethiopia

Author: Beverly Z. Saylor, Luis Gibert, Alan Deino, Mulugeta Alene, Naomi E. Levin, Stephanie M. Melillo, Mark D. Peaple, Sarah J. Feakins, Benjamin Bourel, Doris Barboni, Alice Novello, Florence Sylvestre, Stanley A. Mertzman, Yohannes Haile-Selassie

Issue&Volume: 2019-08-28

Abstract: A fossil hominin cranium was discovered in mid-Pliocene deltaic strata in the Godaya Valley of the northwestern Woranso-Mille study area in Ethiopia. Here we show that analyses of chemically correlated volcanic layers and the palaeomagnetic stratigraphy, combined with Bayesian modelling of dated tuffs, yield an age range of 3.804 ± 0.013 to 3.777 ± 0.014 million years old (mean ± 1σ) for the deltaic strata and the fossils that they contain. We also document deposits of a perennial lake beneath the deltaic sequence. Mammalian fossils associated with the cranium represent taxa that were widespread at the time and data from botanical remains indicate that the vegetation in the lake and delta catchment was predominantly dry shrubland with varying proportions of grassland, wetland and riparian forest. In addition, we report high rates of sediment accumulation and depositional features that are typical of a steep topographic relief and differ from younger Woranso-Mille fossil localities, reflecting the influence of active rift processes on the palaeolandscape.

DOI: 10.1038/s41586-019-1514-7

Source: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-019-1514-7

Nature:《自然》,创刊于1869年。隶属于施普林格·自然出版集团,最新IF:69.504
官方网址:http://www.nature.com/
投稿链接:http://www.nature.com/authors/submit_manuscript.html


本期文章:《自然》:Online/在线发表

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