Skeletal remains from human ancestor Paranthropus boisei were unearthed at the Olduvai Gorge World Heritage fossil site, Tanzania. A study published in the journal PLOS ONE claims that this ancestral hominin could be a champion climber and walker.

The skull of Paranthropus boisei was first revealed in 1959 in Northern Tanzania. The massive cranium and jaws of this human ancestor was discovered by Mary Leakey. Nothing else has been known of Paranthropus boisei until the recent unearthing.

According to the report, the recently excavated skeletal remains of the hominin consist of leg, foot, arm and hand fragments. Specifically, the skeletal remains included nine teeth, a distal humerus fragment, a femur shaft, a proximal radius, with much of its shaft, and a tibia shaft fragment.

The skeletons suggest that the creature stood approximately 3.5 to 4.5 feet tall and was ruggedly built. Researchers also say that the skeletal remains most likely belong to a male.

Charles Musiba, an associate professor of anthropology at the University of Denver Colorado, said in a report by the Daily Mail: "This is the first time we've found bones that suggest that this creature was more ruggedly built - combining terrestrial bipedal locomotion and some arboreal behaviours - than we'd previously thought."

The skeletons suggest that this early ancestor is able "to reach up and pull itself up without a problem." This allowed swinging from tree to tree highly possible and in fact, natural. "It seems to have more well-formed forearm muscles that were used for climbing, fine-manipulation and all sorts of behavior," Musiba continued. According to Nature World News, the Paranthropus boisei's skeletal frame also allowed for walking.

The Paranthropus boisei was part of the species archaic hominin. The species is part of australopethicines, famed for its close relation to humans. The highly popular fossil "Lucy", which has been dubbed as the "matriarch of modern humans", is part of such group.

However, 2.3 million years ago, the australopethicines evolved in East Africa which gave birth to two lines. One line is the genus homo, from which the modern Homo sapiens evolved from; and the other line was the dead-ended Paranthropus.

The team behind the study is reportedly planning to work on a 3D simulation of the Paranthropus boisei. The simulation will allow researchers and the whole community to better illustrate and study the hominin's movements.

"It's a different branch on our ancestry tree. It came later than the other hominins, so the question now is 'what happened to it?' We're going to do more work on biomechanics and see what else this creature was doing," said Musiba.

The human ancestor skeletons will be displayed in a joint-museum exhibit in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania in the summer of 2014.

Related