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Combining Prehension and Propulsion: The Foot of Ardipithecus ramidus

2009; American Association for the Advancement of Science; Volume: 326; Issue: 5949 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1126/science.1175832

1095-9203

C. Owen Lovejoy, Bruce Latimer, Gen Suwa, Berhane Asfaw, Tim D. White,

Pleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology

Several elements of the Ardipithecus ramidus foot are preserved, primarily in the ARA-VP-6/500 partial skeleton. The foot has a widely abducent hallux, which was not propulsive during terrestrial bipedality. However, it lacks the highly derived tarsometatarsal laxity and inversion in extant African apes that provide maximum conformity to substrates during vertical climbing. Instead, it exhibits primitive characters that maintain plantar rigidity from foot-flat through toe-off, reminiscent of some Miocene apes and Old World monkeys. Moreover, the action of the fibularis longus muscle was more like its homolog in Old World monkeys than in African apes. Phalangeal lengths were most similar to those of Gorilla. The Ardipithecus gait pattern would thus have been unique among known primates. The last common ancestor of hominids and chimpanzees was therefore a careful climber that retained adaptations to above-branch plantigrady.