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How long ago did humans and other primates share a common ancestor?
Wiki User
∙ 11y ago
Current thinking is that humans and apes evolved from a common ancestor and scientists are getting closer and closer to telling us that story of our origins. However, they do not have the definitive answer yet.
On October 9, 2009 scientists announced the discovery of the oldest fossil skeleton of a human ancestor to date. It has taken the spotlight off "Lucy", who walked the earth 3.2 million years ago. The discovery was made in Ethiopia. Researchers say it will put to rest the earlier hypothesis of a "missing link" ape that would be found "at the root of the human family tree". The skeleton offers a basis for researchers of what the common ancestor of apes and humans might have been like. There have been astounding archeological discoveries in the last decade that have enabled evolutionists to discard older suppositions and add more information to the story of evolution.
On May 7, 2010 scientists announced they had documented the Neanderthal genome and revealed some interesting facts. We have traces of Neanderthal DNA in our DNA, proving that earlier ancestors assimilated with other early humans.
The study of human evolution is not static. It is going on every day at universities and archeological sights around the world. As new information is discovered the story becomes more accurate. Anyone who can ignore the abundant results of that research is missing out on a treasure trove of interesting information about where we came from.
There have been at least a dozen or so intervening human-like species since hominids and African apes diverged from a common ancestor 5 to 8 million years ago by present estimates. Most of those distant relatives went extinct but the fossil record is abundant with evidence and the chain is always being strengthened through careful research and analysis.
Of course, the fossil record is not as user friendly, or simple to read as a book of faith, written by men who wrote down what they believed based simply on their faith that it must have happened. Scientists have never found their explanations for the way our world works written down in ancient texts. Science reveals its secrets only through a patient study of evidence discovered by painstaking and costly research, funded by universities and governments, performed by people who spend their lives digging for answers.
Once a person has understood that we have solid fossil evidence of the existence of many, many species of earlier hominids that continued to evolve "upward" slowly it should not be so difficult to understand the present thinking among scientists: That one group of apes, in response to their environment, started evolving in a way that would eventually lead to humanity (and many other now-extinct hominids).
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Wiki User
∙ 11y ago
Humans and other primates shared a common ancestor around 5 to 7 million years ago, according to the fossil record and genetic evidence. This common ancestor gave rise to both humans and other primate species through evolutionary divergences over millions of years.
Wiki User
∙ 11y agoThe common ancestor of humans and apes are monkey-like creatures who lived 25-30 million years ago.
Wiki User
∙ 11y ago45 million years ago
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Are baboons and gorillas ancestors of humans?
Baboons and gorillas are not direct ancestors of humans. Humans share a common ancestor with primates like baboons and gorillas from millions of years ago, but they are not direct descendants of these species. We share a more recent common ancestor with great apes like chimpanzees and bonobos.
Is it rue that humans have not descended from chimpanzees but do have a common ancestor with them?
Yes, that's correct. Humans and chimpanzees share a common ancestor that lived several million years ago. While humans and chimpanzees have diverged along separate evolutionary paths since then, they still share a significant amount of genetic material due to their common ancestry.
What were humans before they were human?
Humans evolved from earlier hominid species, such as Homo habilis and Homo erectus, which in turn evolved from a shared ancestor with other primates like chimpanzees. Before humans, our evolutionary ancestors were bipedal primates that gradually developed larger brains and more complex social structures over millions of years.
Why is the important for a paleoanthropologist to know about all primate?
It is important for a paleoanthropologist to know about all primates because understanding the characteristics, behaviors, and evolution of different primate species can provide valuable insights into the evolutionary history of humans. By studying the similarities and differences among primates, paleoanthropologists can better interpret the fossil record and piece together the story of human evolution.
Is evolution of human true?
Yes, the theory of evolution is well-supported by scientific evidence, including fossil records and genetic studies. Humans share a common ancestor with other primates, and have undergone changes over millions of years to become the species we are today.
Were Humans made from Gorrilas?
NO please read the bible ======================== No. The closest primates to humans are chimpanzees. We all (humans, chimpanzes, gorillas, and other primates) evolved, over millions of years, from some common ancestor, but anthropologists have not yet identified that common ancestor.
What is theory of man?
Humans are primates. Apes, monkeys, chimpanzees, etc. are also primates.Skeletons of primates that lived millions of years ago show that the ancestors of humans have changed from rather short hunched and probably furry primates that lived in groups and used stone tools to Homo erectus to the modern human.The theory is that all primates probably had a common ancestor but due to separation of groups, environmental factors and random genetic mutations, speciation occurred and different groups of primates became increasingly different from each other. Modern primates do not look like their distant ancestors after millions of years and each species of modern primates are different from each other. The great ape is different from lemurs and humans. Humans are unique in having the ability to excavate, document and study the remains of organisms that lived millions of years ago.Just as birds had a common ancestor with dinosaurs as did, perhaps reptiles, humans had a common ancestor with other mammals.
Are baboons and gorillas ancestors of humans?
Baboons and gorillas are not direct ancestors of humans. Humans share a common ancestor with primates like baboons and gorillas from millions of years ago, but they are not direct descendants of these species. We share a more recent common ancestor with great apes like chimpanzees and bonobos.
Why are monkeys your relatives?
Monkeys aren't your relatives. However; modern primates, including humans, share a common ancestor. For that matter; depending on how far back you want to go, you share a common ancestor with grass too.
Did monkeys?
Yes, monkeys and all other primates, including humans, share a common ancestor. Animals and other organisms evolve because they need to be better adapted to the conditions they are faced with in order to survive.
According to the fossil record it is not correct to say that humans evolved from chimpanzees?
Humans and chimpanzees, as well as all other animals, have been evolving over immense passages of time. Humans and chimpanzees share a common ancestor and since the time of that ancestor both primates have evolved for the same length of time. To our eyes the ancestor would have been similar to a chimpanzee but only because it would have been hairier and smaller than us.
Why humans cannot be animals?
Humans are animals. We are biological beings that are part of the order Primates. We share a common ancester with other primates. Our closest extant (living) relative would be the chimpanzee (both the common chimp and the bonobo).
Is it rue that humans have not descended from chimpanzees but do have a common ancestor with them?
Yes, that's correct. Humans and chimpanzees share a common ancestor that lived several million years ago. While humans and chimpanzees have diverged along separate evolutionary paths since then, they still share a significant amount of genetic material due to their common ancestry.
Which primate is the closest relative to the common ancestor of all primates?
The last common ancestor between Homo sapiens and their closest relatives among other apes (Chimpanzees) occurred around 6 to 8 million years ago. Because this field is such a new one, and because the information is so limited, as of yet it is difficult to assign a specific species to the common ancestor. Right now the closest we have come is Sahelanthropus tchadensis.
Are apes from human descendant?
Yes. We're not just descendant from them, we are apes (and therefore must logically also be descendant from apes). Of course we're not descended from any modern species of ape: we share a common ancestor with the other modern apes, which would also have been an ape.
Did gorillas evolve from humans?
Humans did not evolve from chimpanzees. Humans share a common ancestor with modern African apes, like gorillas and chimpanzees. Scientists believe this common ancestor existed 5 to 8 million years ago. Shortly thereafter, the species diverged into two separate lineages. One of these lineages ultimately evolved into gorillas and chimps, and the other evolved into early human ancestors called hominids.
Why are primates called nonhuman?
They aren't all non-human because humans are primates. Other primates include monkeys and chimpanzees and orangutans and gorillas, which are non-humans because they're not human.
