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17-million-year-old fossil found in Egypt challenges a long-held view of ape origins
Yahoo • • science
Key Points:
- A newly discovered lower jaw fossil from northern Egypt, named Masripithecus moghraensis, represents the first definitive fossil ape found in North Africa, dating back 17 to 18 million years.
- The fossil fills a gap in the Early Miocene ape fossil record, previously thought to be limited to southern Africa, and suggests early apes were present in northern Africa and the Middle East.
- Anatomical analysis indicates Masripithecus had a versatile diet, primarily fruit-based but capable of processing harder foods, which may have aided survival amid climate changes making the region more seasonal.
- Phylogenetic studies place Masripithecus closer to living apes than any known Early Miocene East African species, implying northern Africa and the Middle East as the likely origin area for the last common ancestor of all living apes.
- The discovery challenges the traditional view that the common ancestor of living apes originated near East Africa and highlights northern Africa as a crucial corridor for ape diversification and migration into Europe and Asia.
