Ancient History further illuminates the path of human evolution
In mapping the path of human evolution, many mysteries veil the earliest of our ancestors. Much is still unknown about the characteristics of ancient primates and how these traits were altered through millions of years. Ten years ago, an ancient piece of the evolutionary puzzle was discovered in China’s Hubei province near the Yangtze River. Archicebus (Greek for ‘long tail monkey’) achilles is a primitive primate that lived an estimated 55 million years ago making it the oldest primate fossil; its discovery has further illuminated the path of human evolution for researchers worldwide.
“Archicebus marks the first time that we have a reasonably complete picture of a primate close to the divergence between tarsiers and anthropoids,” said lead researcher Xijun Ni. Following the modern taxonomic classification, the order of primates are divided to the suborders; Strepsirrhini, primates with moist noses; Haplorhini, primates with dry noses of which humans are a part of; the human evolutionary branch of Anthropoid (including apes, monkeys and humans); and branches from Tarsiers. It is this fork in the evolutionary road that the fossil of the Archicebus Achilles clarifies as the Archicebus is the first species to develop of the Haplorhini suborder that was not part of the Anthropoidea, thus it is the closest primate to the common ancestor between Tarsiers and Anthropoidea. In examining the fossil, researchers are able to gain insight to the characteristics and life style of the human ancestor.
A snapshot of the Earth 55 million years ago shows a dramatic period global warming marking the beginning of the Eocene Epoch. The global climate was on average 10 to 30 degrees warmer than today, with the now frigid waters of the arctic a pleasant 23 C (73 F). The world was shrouded in tropical rainforests that reached as far as the northern territories.
The Archicebus achilles fossil was recovered in sedimentary rock that was believed to have been an ancient lake and was found while the thin layers of rocks were being split. The fossil had been cleaved in half before it’s discovery. Despite this, it is well preserved in two separate pieces.
Following the exciting discovery, teams of scientists delved into the soon to be revealed secrets of the prehistoric world. The fossil was transported to France to undergo analysis in the European Synchrotron Radiation Factility. There the team of scientists used cutting edge high energy X-rays to produce optimal levels of detail. The effort to crack the secrets of the ancient world encouraged elaborate collaborations between scientists of several nations at research facilities in several museums worldwide. After 10 years of intense study, their results are being published.
In order to recreate the image of our ancient ancestor, Jin Meng and his research team at the Division of Palaeontology at the American Museum of Natural History created a data matrix to include thousands characteristic traits and anatomical features of 157 mammals. The portrait of Archicebus Achilles revealed a diminutive creature weighing 20 to 30 grams as an adult. It is believed that Archicebus lived a diurnal life (active in daytime), while in the trees feasting on insects.