Chororapithecus abyssinicus (possible gorilla ancestor)
Chororapithecus abyssinicus (posible ancestro del gorila)
- Date
- 2007 (fósiles de c. 8-10 Ma) · confidence medium
- Place
- Chorora Formation, Oromia, Ethiopia
- Credited to
- Gen Suwa and an Ethiopian-Japanese team
- Field
- Cosmos & Earth
What was discovered
An ape of about 10 Ma known from eight teeth with features resembling those of gorillas. It has been proposed as the oldest sister group of the gorilla lineage.
Described by Suwa and colleagues (Nature, 2007). The link with gorillas rests on few teeth and is a hypothesis, not a consensus; Nakalipithecus (Kenya, 9.9 Ma) has also been proposed as an ancestor.
What it led to
- a minimum date for the gorilla divergence around 10 Ma
- debate on a possible East African origin of the hominin and gorilla clades
- better knowledge of late Miocene apes