News@Nature.com has an article about the recent Australopithecus anamensis n. sp. find in Ethiopia including this nifty chart outlining the current thinking on hominid evolution. It also discusses the possibility that the new material supports an anagenetic (phyletic) rather than cladogenetic mode of evolution for these hominids.
“The latest Afar discovery is exciting experts because it shows that the three hominids existing in the same area, but in successive time periods. Tim White of the University of California, Berkeley, co-leader of the Awash team, believes this points to a direct lineage between the three — a process called phyletic evolution.”Read the full article HERE.
