Discovery of Australopithecus sediba
Descubrimiento de Australopithecus sediba
- Date
- 2008 · confidence high
- Place
- Malapa Cave, Cradle of Humankind, Gauteng, South Africa
- Credited to
- Lee Berger; initial find by Matthew Berger
- Field
- Life & health
⚠️ Disputed: the sources disagree.
What was discovered
On August 15, 2008, 9-year-old Matthew Berger found a fossil clavicle while exploring the site led by his father, palaeoanthropologist Lee Berger; subsequent excavation uncovered two remarkably complete partial skeletons. The species, described in 2010, was proposed as a possible transitional form between Australopithecus and Homo, though the interpretation remains debated.
It is debated whether Australopithecus sediba is a direct ancestor of the genus Homo or a late-surviving sister species with no descendants in our lineage.
What it led to
- Formal description of the species in 2010
- Debate over its position in human evolution
Built on
- Earlier palaeoanthropological work in the Cradle of Humankind