Who was Lucy?Australopithecus Afranesis

Researching the First Skeletons

http://www.asu.edu/clas/iho/lucy.html#found

Where was Lucy found? Douglas Johanson and Thomas

Gray found Lucy on November 24, 1974.

She was found near Hadar in Ethiopia in the Eastern part of Africa.

Johanson took an alternate road home one day, upon this spotting a right forearm bone in the dirt.

He identified this as a hominid. He later found several other bones.

After several weeks of excavations, he found 40% of a human hominid skeleton.

How did Lucy get her name? After much celebration

over the findings of Lucy, that night the archeologists had a celebration with singing and dancing.

Upon, listening to one song “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” by the Beatles; (no one really knows how) but somewhere during the course of the night….Lucy became her name.

Is she a hominid, if so how do we know? Hominid refers to a zoolological name Hominidae. This is referred to as anything during the split of humans

and African apes. The best way to know the differences…Lucy walked

upright----(2 feet!)

How do we know she walked upright? Because a skeleton is

shaped a certain way, Lucy had the distinct characteristics of a human being of today.

Her bone structure and her spinal chords resemble that of a human rather than an ape.

How do we know she is a female? During this time

frame the Australopithecus Afrarensis had taller males and shorter females.

Lucy was a smaller skeleton making her fit the female skeleton form.

How old was she when she died? Archeologists went by her

teeth. Lucy had molars that were worn down, showing she was a full adult.

Also, her bones were combined. (When children are young their bones do not combine).

Many believe she was a young female, but mature when she died.

No one really knows how old she was when she died.

Where is the real Lucy? Researchers made a

mold of her skeleton. Her real skeleton is in

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia in a special area.

Since she is fragile she must be kept in a special place.

How old is Lucy? Researchers believe

that Lucy’s fossils date back to just a little less than 3.18 million years ago!

Was Lucy the only bones found at her site? The answer is YES! If the answer were not yes, everything we

come to learn about Lucy would be proven false.

Now, “Ardi”, who was found in 1992. Ardipithicus Ramidus -found in Ethiopia Also, Ardipithicus Kadabba (father)- 5.7

million years old