New analysis suggests body size increase did not play a role in the origins of Homo genus

(George Washington University). A new analysis of early hominin body size evolution led by a George Washington University professor suggests that the earliest members of the Homo genus (which includes our species, Homo sapiens) may not have been larger than earlier hominin species. As almost all of the hows and whys of human evolution are tied to estimates of body size at particular points in time, these results challenge numerous adaptive hypotheses based around the idea that the origins of Homo coincided with, or were driven by, an increase in body mass. [...] eurekalert.org / Link 2

Journal Reference: Mark Grabowski, Kevin G. Hatala, William L. Jungers, Brian G. Richmond. Body mass estimates of hominin fossils and the evolution of human body size. Journal of Human Evolution, 2015; 85: 75 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2015.05.005