Ledi-Geraru
Ledi-Geraru | |
|---|---|
Paleoanthropological site | |
Ledi-Geraru | |
Interactive map of Ledi-Geraru | |
| Coordinates: 11°15′N 40°42′E / 11.25°N 40.70°E | |
| Country | Ethiopia |
| Region | Afar |
Ledi-Geraru is a paleoanthropological research area in Mille district, Afar Region, northeastern Ethiopia, along the Ledi and Geraru rivers (two left tributaries of the Awash, south of the Mille river). It stretches for about 50 km, located just to the northeast of the Hadar paleoanthropological area.
Early research was conducted in 1972–1974. The Ledi-Geraru Research Project was launched in 2002.[1]
Paleoanthropology
The site is known for its early stone tools, dated about 2.6 million years old.[2] A hominin mandible was found in 2013, known as LD 350-1 and dated 2.75 - 2.8 million years old, which is the very earliest specimen of the genus Homo.[3][4] In 2018 the dentition of a new species of Australopithecus was discovered, and new descriptions published in 2025.[5]
Palaeoenvironment
Based on dental microwear texture analysis of fossils of bovids belonging to various tribes found at Ledi-Geraru, the site is believed to have been characterised by a very grassy, open environment.[6]
See also
References
- ^ "Ledi-Geraru Research Project". ASU. Archived from the original on 6 September 2015. Retrieved 5 August 2015.
- ^ Bruce Bower (June 3, 2019). "Hominids may have been cutting-edge tool makers 2.6 million years ago; Contested finds point to a sharp shift in toolmaking by early members of the Homo genus". ScienceNews.org. Retrieved June 5, 2019.
- ^ Villmoare et al. (2015): "The Gurumaha Tuff is radiometrically dated to 2.842±0.007 Ma, a date that is consistent with the normal magnetic polarity of the Gurumaha section, presumably the Gauss Chron. An upper bounding age for LD 350-1 is provided by an adjacent, downfaulted younger block that contains the 2.665±0.016 Ma Lee Adoyta Tuff. [...] the age of LD 350-1 can be further constrained by stratigraphic scaling. [...] Based on the current chronostratigraphic framework for Ledi-Geraru, we consider the age of LD 350-1 to be 2.80-2.75 Ma". See also: DiMaggio, Erin N.; Campisano, Christopher J.; Rowan, John; Dupont-Nivet, Guillaume; Deino, Alan L.; Bibi, Faysal; Lewis, Margaret E.; Souron, Antoine; Garello, Dominique; Werdelin, Lars; Reed, Kaye E.; Arrowsmith, J Ramón (20 Mar 2015). "Late Pliocene fossiliferous sedimentary record and the environmental context of early Homo from Afar, Ethiopia". Science. 347 (6228): 1355–1359. Bibcode:2015Sci...347.1355D. doi:10.1126/science.aaa1415. PMID 25739409.
- ^ Jeanna Bryner. "Earliest Known Human Fossils Discovered". Livescience.com. Retrieved 5 August 2015.
- ^ Villmoare, Brian; Delezene, Lucas K.; Rector, Amy L.; DiMaggio, Erin N.; Campisano, Christopher J.; Feary, David A.; Ali, Baro’o Mohammed; Chupik, Daniel; Deino, Alan L.; Garello, Dominique I.; Hayidara, Mohammed Ahmeddin; Locke, Ellis M.; Omar, Omar Abdulla; Robinson, Joshua R.; Scott, Eric (2025-08-13). "New discoveries of Australopithecus and Homo from Ledi-Geraru, Ethiopia". Nature. doi:10.1038/s41586-025-09390-4. ISSN 0028-0836. PMC 12893913.
- ^ Kirkpatrick, A. G.; Lazagabaster, I. A.; Robinson, J. R.; Rowan, J.; Campisano, C. J.; Reed, K. E.; Scott, Jessica Renee; Ungar, Peter Stuart (15 July 2025). "Dental microwear of bovids from the Pliocene-Pleistocene transition in the lower Awash Valley, Ethiopia". Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology. 670 112932. doi:10.1016/j.palaeo.2025.112932. Retrieved 16 August 2025 – via Elsevier Science Direct.
- Dimaggio, E. N.; et al. (2015). "Tephrostratigraphy and depositional environment of young (<2.94 Ma) Hadar Formation deposits at Ledi-Geraru, Afar, Ethiopia". Journal of African Earth Sciences. 112: 234–250. doi:10.1016/j.jafrearsci.2015.09.018.