The Forgotten Lineage(s)

This volume brings together an international roster of scientists, many of which have spent their careers researching the fossil evidence for, and the context of, the taxa that are conventionally subsumed within the genus Paranthropus, to present and synthesize the latest research about the paleobiology of Paranthropus. Among the topics and questions collectively explored are the following:- The history of the "robust australopiths".- Fossil evidence from sites in eastern and southern Africa.- The context of the relevant fossil evidence (e.g., dating, paleohabitat, etc.).- Functional and adaptive significance of the relevant fossil evidence (e.g. diet, posture, locomotion, dexterity, etc).- Taxonomy and systematics (e.g., primary and secondary evidence relevant to determining the evolutionary relationships among the fossil evidence from eastern and southern Africa).- Synthesis and summary, including whether and how a better understanding of Paranthropus can inform us about the evolutionary history of our own genus. This much needed volume presents the first comprehensive review of Paranthropus in more than three decades, and will appeal to researchers, graduate students, and upper level undergraduate students.

Dr. Paul Constantino is an Associate Professor in the Department of Biology at Saint Michael's College, Vermont, USA. His research interests include evolutionary morphology of the skull and dentition, dietary adaptations and paleoanthropology. Dr. Kaye Reed is a Professor and Director of the School of Human Evolution and Social Change at Arizona State University. Her research interests include early hominid paleoecology, mammal paleontology, community ecology, mammalian biogeography, human evolution, primate evolution and macroecology. Dr. Bernard Wood is a Professor of Human Origins and Human Evolutionary Anatomy in the Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology at George Washington University. His research interests include understanding the evolution of higher primates, hominin taxonomy and hominin evolutionary biology.

The Fossil Evidence for Paranthropus History of Discovery and Interpretation.- On the Enigmatic KNM-WT 17000 Cranium of Australopithecus aethiopicus.- The Role of Selection in Shaping the Craniomandibular Morphology of Paranthropus.- Brain Evolution in Paranthropus.