Early Human Ancestors: Hands for Climbing and Tool-Making

Based on Samar M. Syeda et al., Science Advances, May 14, 2025

What the Study Looked At

• Scientists used 3D scanning to measure bone thickness of fossil finger bones.

• Fossils studied:

  • Australopithecus sediba (lived ~2 million years ago, South Africa).

  • Homo naledi (lived ~300,000 years ago, South Africa).

Findings

• Both species used hands in dual ways:

  • For climbing trees and moving around.

  • For grasping and manipulating objects – a key step toward tool-making.

• They were likely bipedal walkers, but also spent time climbing or hanging on trees and cliffs.

Why This Matters

• Shows that human hand evolution was not a straight path from “ape-like” to “human-like.”

• Instead, early ancestors had a blend of adaptations – strong enough for climbing yet precise enough for tool use.

• Highlights the flexibility of evolution, where multiple skills were retained at once.

Anthropological Insight

• Hands played a central role in the transition from forest life to tool-using human culture.

• This dual-use capacity explains how early humans survived in diverse environments.