238 INTRODUCTION TO EVOLUTION 



known specimens still more time for evolution of Pithecanthropus from 

 australopithecine-type hominids would have been available. 



Pithecanthropus 



Our discussion of the australopithecines has indicated that early in the 

 Pleistocene human evolution had progressed to acquirement of upright 

 posture (perhaps even foreshadowed long before in Oreopithecus) and es- 

 sentially human dentition. Upright posture freed the hands from locomotor 

 duties and made possible, at least potentially, the use of tools. The brain, 

 however, was still abnormally small for a primate that could be called hu- 

 man. In subsequent evolution to the Homo sapiens stage the brain in- 

 creased in size, and the jaws and teeth decreased. What fossil remains do 

 we have indicating the steps in this process? 



Long before the first australopithecines were discovered unusual human 

 remains had been found on the Asiatic island of Java. Here, in 1891, 

 Dubois collected a skullcap with a few associated teeth and bones, notably 

 a femur. The original owner of these bones was named Pithecanthropus 

 erectus, meaning "erect ape-man." For years a controversy as to whether 

 the creature was ape or man raged around these meager fossils. For- 

 tunately he and his fellows are now known from portions of four skulls 

 and some additional bones. More recently similar fossils were found in a 

 cave near Peiping, China. Here a total of fifteen skulls and skull frag- 

 ments have been found (Weidenreich, 1943, 1946). These fossils were 

 named Sinanthropus pekinensis but subsequent investigation revealed that 

 they are so similar to the Javan fossils that they certainly should be in- 

 cluded in the same genus. Accordingly they have been renamed Pithe- 

 canthropus pekinensis. But here, even more than in the case of the aus- 

 tralopithecines (p. 235), we are confronted with the question as to whether 

 in reality these men should not be included in the genus of men, Homo. 

 Mayr (1950) suggested that they be classified as Homo erectus. What name 

 shall we use for them, then? In order to have a distinctive title without 

 prejudging the outcome of the taxonomic controversy we shall follow the 

 usage of Brown (1958) in employing the name Pithecanthropus without 

 italicizing it; in this way we use it as a common or vernacular name rather 

 than as a technical generic name. 



Like the australopithecines. Pithecanthropus walked upright; he was 

 slightly taller than the former, averaging in the neighborhood of 5 feet in 

 height. The limb bones are indistinguishable from those of Homo sapiens. 

 The brain size was somewhat increased over that of the australopithecines. 



