Maba Man ( simplified Chinese : 马坝人 ; traditional Chinese : 馬壩人 ; pinyin : mǎbà-rén ) is a pre-modern hominin whose remains were discovered in 1958 in caves near the town called Maba , near Shaoguan city in the northern part of Guangdong province, China .
147-459: Farmers found the Maba cranium in 1958 near a Chinese village named Maba. Maba Man was labeled an intermediate in form between Homo erectus and H. sapiens ; the remains are referred by many authorities to archaic H. sapiens or to an Asian extension of H. heidelbergensis . As the scientists did more research on the Maba cranium, they found that the fossils consisted of a skull cap and parts of
294-593: A 16-hour waking period, whereas other apes are generally awake from only sunup to sundown—and these additional hours were probably used for socializing. Because of this, fire usage is probably also linked to the origin of language . Artificial lighting may have also made sleeping on the ground instead of the trees possible by keeping terrestrial predators at bay. Migration into the frigid climate of Ice Age Europe may have only been possible because of fire, but evidence of fire usage in Europe until about 400–300,000 years ago
441-421: A 500,000-year timespan, and the sudden appearance of the typical human body plan. Cooking makes protein more easily digestible, speeds up nutrient absorption, and destroys food-borne pathogens, which would have increased the environment's natural carrying capacity, allowing group size to expand, causing selective pressure for sociality, requiring greater brain function. However, the fossil record does not associate
588-479: A brain volume of 310 cc (19 cu in) could have been safely delivered, which is 34–36% the mean adult size, compared to 40% in chimps and 28% in modern humans. This more aligns with the conclusions drawn from the Mojokerto child. A faster development rate could indicate a lower expected lifespan. Based on an average mass of 63 kg (139 lb) for males and 52.3 kg (115 lb) for females,
735-676: A common European ancestor; the two species are thought to have diverged 3,000,000 years ago, though genetic evidence is inconclusive. Both the American and Asian black species are considered sister taxa and are more closely related to each other than to the other species of bear. The earliest known specimens of Asian black bears are known from the Early Pliocene of Moldova. The earliest American black bear fossils, which were located in Port Kennedy , Pennsylvania , greatly resemble
882-406: A consequence of a dietary shift to low-calcium meat. Kennedy could not explain why the calcium metabolism of H. erectus never adjusted. In 1985, American paleoanthropologist Mary Doria Russell and colleagues argued the supraorbital torus is a response to withstanding major bending moment which localizes in that region when significant force is applied through the front teeth, such as while using
1029-423: A controversial claim. H. erectus males and females may have been roughly the same size as each other (i.e. exhibited reduced sexual dimorphism ), which could indicate monogamy in line with general trends exhibited in primates. Size, nonetheless, ranged widely from 146–185 cm (4 ft 9 in – 6 ft 1 in) in height and 40–68 kg (88–150 lb) in weight. It is unclear if H. erectus
1176-417: A distinct genus of extinct ape. Homo erectus featured a flat face compared to earlier hominins; pronounced brow ridge; and a low, flat skull. The presence of sagittal , frontal , and coronal keels, which are small crests that run along these suture lines, has been proposed to be evidence of significant thickening of the skull, specifically the cranial vault . CT scan analyses reveal this to not be
1323-597: A distinct whitish or creamy patch on the chest, which is sometimes V-shaped. Its ears are bell shaped, proportionately longer than those of other bears, and stick out sideways from the head. Its tail is short, around 11 cm (4.3 in) long. Adults measure 70–100 cm (28–39 in) at the shoulder, and 120–190 cm (47–75 in) in length. Adult males weigh 60–200 kg (130–440 lb) with an average weight of about 135 kg (298 lb). Adult females weigh 40–125 kg (88–276 lb), and large ones up to 140 kg (310 lb). The Asian black bear
1470-473: A gestation period of 200–240 days. Cubs weigh 13 ounces at birth, and will begin walking at four days of age, and open their eyes three days later. The skulls of newborn Asian black bear cubs bear great resemblance to those of adult sun bears . Litters can consist of 1–4 cubs, with 2 being the average. Cubs have a slow growth rate, reaching only 2.5 kg by May. Asian black bear cubs will nurse for 104–130 weeks, and become independent at 24–36 months. There
1617-424: A greater degree than brown bears, and more carnivorous than American black bears, Asian black bears are not as specialized in their diet as giant pandas are: while giant pandas depend on a constant supply of low calorie, yet abundant foodstuffs, Asian black bears are more opportunistic and have opted for a nutritional boom-or-bust economy. They thus gorge themselves on a variety of seasonal high calorie foods, storing
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#17327758598131764-569: A group of at least 20 individuals. One of these trackways, based on the size of the footprints, may have been an entirely male group, which could indicate they were some specialised task group, such as a hunting or foraging party, or a border patrol. If correct, this would also indicate sexual division of labour, which distinguishes human societies from those of other great apes and social mammalian carnivores. In modern hunter gatherer societies who target large prey items, typically male parties are dispatched to bring down these high-risk animals, and, due to
1911-1085: A half a million years. Alternatively, a group of H. habilis may have been reproductively isolated , and only this group developed into H. erectus ( cladogenesis ). Because the earliest remains of H. erectus are found in both Africa and East Asia (in China as early as 2.1 Mya, in South Africa 2.04 Mya ), it is debated where H. erectus evolved. A 2011 study suggested that it was H. habilis who reached West Asia from Africa, that early H. erectus developed there, and that early H. erectus would then have dispersed from West Asia to East Asia ( Peking Man ), Southeast Asia ( Java Man ), back to Africa ( Homo ergaster ), and to Europe ( Tautavel Man ), eventually evolving into modern humans in Africa. Others have suggested that H. erectus / H. ergaster developed in Africa, where it eventually evolved into modern humans. H. erectus had reached Sangiran , Java, by 1.5 Mya, and
2058-654: A high level due to the harm they cause to crops, orchards and bee farms. During the 1950s and 1960s, 1,000 Asian black bears were harvested annually in the Heilongjiang Province. However, purchased furs were reduced by 4/5, even by 9/10 yearly in the late 1970s to the early 1980s. Asian black bears have also been declining annually in Dehong Dai and Jingpo Nations Autonomous Prefecture and the Yunnan Province. Poaching for gall bladders and skin are
2205-436: A highly varied diet). Such versatility may have permitted H. erectus to inhabit a range of different environments and migrate beyond Africa. In 1999, British anthropologist Richard Wrangham proposed the "cooking hypothesis" which states that H. erectus speciated from the ancestral H. habilis because of fire usage and cooking 2 million years ago to explain the rapid doubling of brain size between these two species in only
2352-408: A humanlike curvature of the spine ( lordosis ) and the same number of respective vertebrae. It is largely unclear when human ancestors lost most of their body hair. Genetic analysis suggests that high activity in the melanocortin 1 receptor , which would produce dark skin, dates back to 1.2 Mya. This could indicate the evolution of hairlessness around this time, as a lack of body hair would have left
2499-618: A loving mother, and a child. Being a largely solitary creature, the Asian black bear is also viewed as "lonely person" ( sabishigariya ). Asian black bears feature very little in lowland Japanese folklore, but are prominent in upland Japan, a fact thought to reflect the bear's greater economic value in upland areas. According to the local folklore in Kituarahara-gun in Niigata , the Asian black bear received its white mark after being given
2646-537: A male spectacled bear , and produced several hybrid descendants. In 2005, a possible Asian black bear– sun bear hybrid cub was captured in the Mekong River watershed of eastern Cambodia. An Asian black bear/brown bear hybrid, taken from a bile farm, is housed at the Animals Asia Foundation 's China Moon Bear Rescue as of 2010 . The Asian black bear has black fur, a light brown muzzle, and
2793-1207: A procession of largest to smallest. They are good climbers of rocks and trees, and will climb to feed, rest, sun, elude enemies and hibernate. Some older bears may become too heavy to climb. Half of their life is spent in trees and they are one of the largest arboreal mammals. In the Ussuri territory in the Russian Far East, Asian black bears can spend up to 15% of their time in trees. Asian black bears break branches and twigs to place under themselves when feeding on trees, thus causing many trees in their home ranges to have nest-like structures on their tops. Asian black bears will rest for short periods in nests on trees standing fifteen feet or higher. Asian black bears do not hibernate over most of their range . They may hibernate in their colder, northern ranges, though some bears will simply move to lower elevations. Nearly all pregnant sows hibernate . Asian black bears prepare their dens for hibernation in mid-October, and will sleep from November until March. Their dens can either be dug-out hollow trees (60 feet above ground), caves or holes in
2940-410: A second and distinct wave of H. erectus had colonized Zhoukoudian , China, about 780 kya (thousand years ago) . Early teeth from Sangiran are bigger and more similar to those of basal (ancestral) Western H. erectus and H. habilis than to those of the derived Zhoukoudian H. erectus . However, later Sangiran teeth seem to reduce in size, which could indicate a secondary colonization event of Java by
3087-440: A shift in female behavior which made it difficult for males to maintain a harem, and vice versa. Increasing brain size is often directly associated with a meatier diet and resultant higher caloric intake. Human entomophagy and therefore an increase in protein consumption through insects has also been proposed as a possible cause. However, it is also possible that the energy-expensive guts decreased in size in H. erectus , because
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#17327758598133234-537: A silk-wrapped amulet by yama no kami , which left the mark after being removed. In Hindu mythology , the Asian black bear Jambavantha (also known as Jambavan or Jamvanta) is believed to have lived from Treta Yuga to Dvapara Yuga . In the epic Ramayana , Jambavantha assists Rama in finding his wife Sita and battle her abductor, Ravana . Asian black bears are briefly mentioned in Yann Martel 's novel The Life of Pi , in which they are described by
3381-462: A similar activity level have a DEE of 2,450 calories, of which 33% derives from fat, and 49% of the fat from animals. The cortical bone (the outer layer of the bone) is extraordinarily thickened, particularly in East Asian populations. The skullcaps have oftentimes been confused with fossil turtle carapaces , and the medullary canal in the long bones (where the bone marrow is stored, in
3528-414: A similar reason for the unusual thickening of the modern Australian Aboriginal skull, a result of a ritual popular in central and southeast Australian tribes where adversaries would wack each other with waddies (sticks) until knockout . The only fossil evidence regarding H. erectus group composition comes from four sites outside of Ileret , Kenya, where 97 footprints made 1.5 Mya were likely left by
3675-570: A skullcap in 1891 and a femur in 1892 ( Java Man ) dating to the late Pliocene or early Pleistocene at the Trinil site along the Solo River , which he named Pithecanthropus erectus ("upright apeman") in 1893. He attempted unsuccessfully to convince the European scientific community that he had found an upright-walking ape-man. Given few fossils of ancient humans had even been discovered at
3822-750: A small number of bird keel bones and snake spine bones. Homo erectus Homo erectus ( / ˌ h oʊ m oʊ ə ˈ r ɛ k t ə s / lit. ' upright man ' ) is an extinct species of archaic human from the Pleistocene , with its earliest occurrence about 2 million years ago. Its specimens are among the first recognizable members of the genus Homo . Several human species, such as H. heidelbergensis and H. antecessor , appear to have evolved from H. erectus , and Neanderthals , Denisovans , and modern humans are in turn generally considered to have evolved from H. heidelbergensis . H. erectus
3969-567: A surviving, albeit modified, form of Ursus etruscus , specifically the early, small variety of the Middle Villafranchian (Upper Pliocene to Lower Pleistocene) or a larger form of Ursus minimus , an extinct species that arose 4,000,000 years ago. With the exception of the age of the bones, it is often difficult to distinguish the remains of Ursus minimus with those of modern Asian black bears. Asian black bears are close relatives to American black bears, with which they share
4116-642: A tiger on a juvenile Asian black bear has been recorded in Jigme Dorji National Park . One Siberian tiger was reported to have lured an Asian black bear by imitating its mating call . However, Asian black bears are probably less vulnerable to tiger attacks than brown bears, due to their habit of living in hollows or in close set rocks. The Asian black bear is listed as a protected animal in China's National Protection Wildlife Law, which stipulates that anyone hunting or catching bears without permits will be subject to severe punishment. Although
4263-522: A wide range of vocalizations, including grunts, whines, roars, slurping sounds (sometimes made when feeding) and "an appalling row" when wounded, alarmed or angry. They emit loud hisses when issuing warnings or threats, and scream when fighting. When approaching other bears, they produce "tut tut" sounds, thought to be produced by bears snapping their tongue against the roof of their mouth. When courting, they emit clucking sounds. Within Sikhote-Alin,
4410-403: Is 84% higher than that for Australopithecus females, possibly due to an increased body size and a decreased growth rate. A 2011 study, assuming high energy or dietary fat requirements based on the abundance of large game animals at H. erectus sites, calculated a DEE of 2,700–3,400 kcal of which 27–44% derived from fat, and 44–62% of the fat from animal sources. In comparison, modern humans with
4557-480: Is Wonderwerk Cave, South Africa, about 1.6 Mya, but evidence of cave use globally is sporadic until about 600 kya. Asian black bear 7, see text Selenarctos thibetanus Ursus torquatus (Blandford 1888) The Asian black bear ( Ursus thibetanus ), also known as the Indian black bear , Asiatic black bear , moon bear and white-chested bear , is a medium-sized bear species native to Asia that
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4704-1090: Is a chopper with a remaining part about 15.82 cm long, 8.64 cm wide. The sharp edge of it is 2.31 cm. KP84002 has a diameter of 9.41 cm, and is 4.73 cm thick. A total of 8 orders of animal fossils were found in the Lion Cave. The list includes Macaca sp., Rhinopithecus tingianus , Pongo sp., Rattus rattus , Hystrix sp., Hystrix subcristata , Cuon javanicus , Ailuropoda melanoleuca fovealis , Ursus thibetanus , Arctonyx collaris , Paguma larvata , Viberra zibetha expectata , Crocuta ultima , Felis sp., Panthera tigris , Stegodon orientalis , Palaeoloxodon namadicus , Megatapirus augustus , Rhinoceros sinensis , Tapirus sp., Sus scrofa , Sus sp., Muntiacus muntjak , Cervus unicolor , Hydropotes sp., Bubalus sp., Testudo tungia , Parasilurus asotus , Pelteobagrus fulvidraco , Unio sp., Corbicula sp., along with Caprinae indent, Trionychidae indet, Cyprinidae indet, Gastropoda ,
4851-565: Is about 40°30" N. In Korea, most of the Asian black bears live in the broad-leaved forest of the alpine region, more than 1,500 meters north of Jirisan . Korean National Park Service announced on April 15, 2018, that eight mother bears gave birth to 11 cubs. Six mother bears living in the wild gave birth to eight cubs. Two mothers that were being taken care by the nature adaptation training center in Gurye , South Jeolla Province gave birth to three cubs. Now, there are 56 Asian black bears living in
4998-717: Is credited as the first human ancestor to have used fire, though the timing of this invention is debated mainly because campfires very rarely and very poorly preserve over long periods of time, especially thousands or millions of years. The earliest claimed fire sites are in Kenya, FxJj20 at Koobi Fora and GnJi 1/6E in the Chemoigut Formation , as far back as 1.5 Mya, and in South Africa, Wonderwerk Cave , 1.7 Mya. The first firekeepers are thought to have simply transported to caves and maintained naturally occurring fires for extended periods of time or only sporadically when
5145-893: Is credited with inventing the Acheulean stone tool industry, succeeding the Oldowan industry, and were the first to make lithic flakes bigger than 10 cm (3.9 in), and hand axes (which includes bifacial tools with only 2 sides, such as picks, knives, and cleavers ). Though larger and heavier, these hand axes had sharper, chiseled edges. They were likely multi-purpose tools, used in variety of activities such as cutting meat, wood, or edible plants. In 1979, American paleontologist Thomas Wynn stated that Acheulean technology required operational intelligence (foresight and planning), being markedly more complex than Oldowan technology which included lithics of unstandardized shape, cross-sections, and symmetry. Based on this, he concluded that there
5292-592: Is debated if the H. e. pekinensis inhabitants of Zhoukoudian , Northern China, were capable of controlling fires as early as 770 kya to stay warm in what may have been a relatively cold climate. In 1962, a 366 cm × 427 cm × 30 cm (12 ft × 14 ft × 1 ft) circle made with volcanic rocks was discovered in Olduvai Gorge . At 61–76 cm (2–2.5 ft) intervals, rocks were piled up to 15–23 cm (6–9 in) high. British palaeoanthropologist Mary Leakey suggested
5439-708: Is difficult to police such borders, which are often in mountainous terrain. Five Asian black bear populations, occurring in Kyushu, Shikoku, West-Chugoku, East-Chugoku and Kii areas, were listed as endangered by the Environmental Agency in the Japanese Red Data Book in 1991. Small isolated populations in the Tanzawa and Shimokita areas of mainland Honshū were listed as endangered in 1995. Beyond recognizing these populations as endangered, there
5586-486: Is generally hypothesised that they lived in a monogamous society, as reduced sexual dimorphism in primates is typically correlated with this mating system. However, it is unclear if H. erectus did in fact exhibit humanlike rates of sexual dimorphism. If they did, then it would mean only female height increased from the ancestor species, which could have been caused by a shift in female fertility or diet, and/or reduced pressure on males for large size. This in turn could imply
5733-433: Is genetic rather than environmental. It is unclear if the condition is caused by increased bone apposition (bone formation) or decreased bone resorption , but Garn noted the stenosis is quite similar to the congenital condition in modern humans induced by hyper-apposition. In 1985, biological anthropologist Gail Kennedy argued for resorption as a result of hyperparathyroidism caused by hypocalcemia ( calcium deficiency),
5880-777: Is greater than the range of variation seen in modern humans and chimps, though less than that of gorillas. In an article published in 2021 titled "Interpopulational variation in human brain size: Implications for hominin cognitive phylogeny," it was found that the brain size of Asian H. erectus over the last 600,000 years overlaps significantly with modern human populations. Significantly, some small brained modern populations showed greater affinity with H. erectus than they did with other large brained and large bodied modern populations. The paper points out methodological flaws in current understanding of brain size increase in human evolution, where species averages are compared with fossils, which overlooks interpopulational variation. It also overlooks
6027-819: Is largely adapted to an arboreal lifestyle. It lives in the Himalayas , southeastern Iran , the northern parts of the Indian subcontinent , Mainland Southeast Asia , the Korean Peninsula, China, the Russian Far East , the islands of Honshū and Shikoku in Japan, and Taiwan. It is listed as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List , and is threatened by deforestation and poaching for its body parts, which are used in traditional medicine . Biologically and morphologically, Asian black bears represent
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6174-534: Is no definite consensus as to whether they should be classified as subspecies of H. erectus or H. sapiens or as separate species. Meganthropus , based on fossils found in Java, dated to between 1.4 and 0.9 Mya, was tentatively grouped with H. erectus in contrast to earlier interpretations of it as a giant species of early human although older literature has placed the fossils outside of Homo altogether. However, Zanolli et al. (2019) judged Meganthropus to be
6321-712: Is not a significant disparity in intelligence between H. erectus and modern humans and that, for the last 300,000 years, increasing intelligence has not been a major influencer of cultural evolution. However, a 1 year old H. erectus specimen shows that this species lacked an extended childhood required for greater brain development, indicating lower cognitive capabilities. A few sites, likely due to occupation over several generations, features hand axes en masse, such as at Melka Kunture , Ethiopia; Olorgesailie , Kenya; Isimila , Tanzania; and Kalambo Falls , Zambia. The earliest record of Acheulean technology comes from West Turkana , Kenya 1.76 Mya. Oldowan lithics are also known from
6468-799: Is notably absent. If these early European H. erectus did not have fire, it is largely unclear how they stayed warm, avoided predators, and prepared animal fat and meat for consumption. There was also a lower likelihood of naturally occurring fires due to lightning being less common in areas further north. It is possible that they only knew how to maintain fires in certain settings in the landscapes and prepared food some distance away from home, meaning evidence of fire and evidence of hominin activity are spaced far apart. Alternatively, H. erectus may have only pushed farther north during warmer interglacial periods—thus not requiring fire, food storage, or clothing technology— and their dispersal patterns indicate they generally stayed in warmer lower-to-middle latitudes. It
6615-530: Is only demonstrated in modern humans. Like modern humans and unlike other great apes , there does not seem to have been a great size disparity between H. erectus males and females (size-specific sexual dimorphism ), though there is not much fossil data regarding this. Brain size in two adults from Koobi Fora measured 848 and 804 cc (51.7 and 49.1 cu in), and another significantly smaller adult measured 691 cc (42.2 cu in), which could possibly indicate sexual dimorphism, though sex
6762-479: Is poor, and their hearing range is moderate, the upper limit being 30 kHz . The Asian black bear once ranged as far west as Western Europe during the Middle Pleistocene and early Late Pleistocene , though it now occurs very patchily throughout its former range, which is limited to Asia. Today, it occurs from southeastern Iran eastward through Afghanistan and Pakistan , across the foothills of
6909-495: Is possible that firestarting was invented and lost and reinvented multiple times and independently by different communities rather than being invented in one place and spreading throughout the world. The earliest evidence of hearths comes from Gesher Benot Ya'aqov, Israel, over 700,000 years ago, where fire is recorded in multiple layers in an area close to water, both uncharacteristic of natural fires. Artificial lighting may have led to increased waking hours—modern humans have about
7056-447: Is possible that male–male bonding and male–female friendships were important societal aspects. Because H. erectus children had faster brain growth rates, H. erectus likely did not exhibit the same degree of maternal investment or child-rearing behaviours as modern humans. Because H. erectus males and females are thought to have been about the same size compared to other great apes (exhibit less size-specific sexual dimorphism), it
7203-466: Is possible that they were the first in the human line to do so, though the fragmentary fossil record for earlier species makes this unclear. If yes, then there was a substantial and sudden increase in female height. Certain features of sexual dimorphism are often identified in the possibility of determining sex such as lack of muscle marking. H. erectus had about the same limb configurations and proportions as modern humans, implying humanlike locomotion,
7350-543: Is similar in general build to brown bear ( Ursus arctos ), but is lighter and smaller. The lips and nose are larger and more mobile than those of brown bears. The skulls of the Asian black bear is relatively small, but massive, particularly in the lower jaw. Adult males have skulls measuring 311.7 to 328 mm (12.27 to 12.91 in) in length and 199.5–228 mm (7.85–8.98 in) in width, while female skulls are 291.6–315 mm (11.48–12.40 in) long and 163–173 mm (6.4–6.8 in) wide. Compared to other bears of
7497-430: Is sometimes considered as a wide-ranging, polymorphous species. Due to such a wide range of variation, it has been suggested that the ancient H. rudolfensis and H. habilis should be considered early varieties of H. erectus . The primitive H. e. georgicus from Dmanisi , Georgia has the smallest brain capacity of any known Pleistocene hominin (about 600 cc), and its inclusion in the species would greatly expand
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#17327758598137644-573: Is sometimes not even regarded as H. erectus . It is debated whether the African H. e. ergaster is a separate species (and that H. erectus evolved in Asia, then migrated to Africa), or is the African form ( sensu lato ) of H. erectus ( sensu stricto ) . In the latter, H. ergaster has also been suggested to represent the immediate ancestor of H. erectus . It has also been suggested that H. ergaster instead of H. erectus , or some hybrid between
7791-539: Is still a lack of efficient conservation methods for Japanese black bears. Asian black bears occur as an infrequent species in the Red Data Book of Russia, thus falling under special protection and hunting is prohibited. There is currently a strong movement to legalize the hunting of Russian black bears, which is supported by most of the local scientific community. As of January 30, 1989, Taiwan's Formosan black bears have been listed as an endangered species under
7938-412: Is the most bipedal of all bears, and can walk upright for over 400 m (0.25 mi). The heel pads on the forefeet are larger than those of most other bear species. Their claws, which are primarily used for climbing and digging, are slightly longer on the fore foot at 30–45 mm (1.2–1.8 in) than the back foot at 18–36 mm (0.71–1.42 in), and are larger and more hooked than those of
8085-708: Is the only subspecies of bear in northeastern China. Asian black bears are mainly distributed in the conifer forests in the cold and temperate zones of northeast China, the main areas being Chang Bai, Zhang Guangcai, Lao Ye, and the Lesser Xingan Mountains. Within Liaoning province, there are about 100 Asian black bears, which only inhabit the five counties of Xin Bin, Huan Ren, Ben Xi, Kuan Dian, and Fen Cheng. Within Jilin province, Asian black bears occur mainly in
8232-409: Is typically exacerbated in dark-skinned people living in higher latitudes due to vitamin D deficiency. Hairlessness is generally thought to have facilitated sweating, but reduction of parasite load and sexual selection have also been proposed. The 1.8 Ma Mojokerto child specimen from Java, who died at about 1 year of age, presented 72–84% of the average adult brain size, which is more similar to
8379-525: Is usually a 2–3 year interval period before females produce subsequent litters. The average lifespan in the wild is 25 years, while the oldest Asian black bear in captivity died at the age of 44. Asian black bears are omnivorous, and will feed on insects , beetle larvae , invertebrates , termites , grubs , carrion , bees , eggs , garbage , mushrooms , grasses , bark , roots , tubers , fruits , nuts , seeds , honey , herbs , acorns , cherries , dogwood , and grain . Although herbivorous to
8526-679: The Chittagong Hill Tracts , the population is very small. Conservationists fear that the species will soon be extinct in the country if necessary steps to protect it are not taken in the near future. Three subspecies of the Asian black bear occur in China: the Tibetan subspecies ( U. thibetanus thibetanus ), the Indochinese subspecies ( U. thibetanus mupinensis ), and the northeastern subspecies ( U. thibetanus ussuricus ), which
8673-751: The Dutch East Indies . Because no directed expedition had ever discovered human fossils (the few known had all been discovered by accident), and the economy was strained by the Long Depression , the Dutch government refused to fund Dubois. In 1887, he enlisted in the Dutch East India Army as a medical officer, and was able to secure a post in 1887 in the Indies to search for his " missing link " in his spare time. On Java , he found
8820-656: The Himalayas in India and Myanmar to mainland Southeast Asia , except Malaysia . Its range in northeastern and southern China is patchy, and it is absent in much of east-central China. Other population clusters exist in the southern Russian Far East and in North Korea . A small remnant population survives in South Korea . It also occurs on the Japanese islands of Honshu and Shikoku , as well as on Taiwan and
8967-587: The Late Pleistocene , two further subspecies ranged across Europe and West Asia. These are U. t. mediterraneus from Western Europe and the Caucasus and U. t. permjak from Eastern Europe, particularly the Ural Mountains . Asian black bears are reproductively compatible with several other bear species, and have on occasion produced hybrid offspring. According to Jack Hanna's Monkeys on
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#17327758598139114-482: The Second Sino-Japanese War after an attempt to smuggle them out of China for safekeeping. Only casts remain. Similarities between Java Man and Peking Man led Ernst Mayr to rename both as Homo erectus in 1950. Throughout much of the 20th century, anthropologists debated the role of H. erectus in human evolution . Early in the century, due in part to the discoveries at Java and Zhoukoudian,
9261-711: The Ussuri krai , the species is restricted to broad-leaved Manchurian-type forests. In Taiwan, the endemic subspecies of Asiatic Black Bear, the Formosan black bear ( Ursus thibetanus formosanus ), chiefly is confined to the mountain ranges in the central regions of the island. It can be found along the Central and Snow mountain ranges , with populations in the latter being more common. The largest population of bears seem to be Lala mountain in Chatienshan Reserve,
9408-501: The genus Ursus , the projections of the skull are weakly developed; the sagittal crest is low and short, even in old specimens, and does not exceed more than 19–20% of the total length of the skull, unlike in the brown bear, which has a sagittal crest comprising up to 41% of the skull's length. Although mostly herbivorous, the jaw structure of Asian black bears is not as specialized for plant eating as that of giant pandas : Asian black bears have much narrower zygomatic arches , and
9555-859: The sloth bear in central and southern India, the sun bear in Southeast Asia and the brown bear in the southern part of the Russian Far East. Asian black bears seem to intimidate Himalayan brown bears in direct encounters. They eat the fruit dropped by Asian black bears from trees, as they themselves are too large and cumbersome to climb. Ussuri brown bears may attack Asian black bears. Asian black bears are occasionally attacked by tigers and brown bears . Leopards are known to prey on bear cubs younger than two years old. Packs of wolves and Eurasian lynxes are potential predators of bear cubs as well. Asian black bears usually dominate Amur leopards in physical confrontations in heavily vegetated areas, while leopards are uppermost in open areas, though
9702-558: The (Snow) Mountain area in Sheipa National Park , and Taroko National Park . These populations' individuals and numbers can be found south to Tawushan Reserve through Yushan National Park . Typically they are found in rugged areas at elevations of 1,000–3,500 metres (3,300–11,500 ft). The estimated number of individuals in these regions number some 200 to 600 bears. Asian black bears are diurnal , though they become nocturnal near human habitations. They will walk in
9849-666: The 1970s, propelled most notably by Richard Leakey , more were being unearthed in East Africa predominantly at the Koobi Fora site, Kenya, and Olduvai Gorge , Tanzania. Archaic human fossils unearthed across Europe used to be assigned to H. erectus , but have since been separated as H. heidelbergensis as a result of British physical anthropologist Chris Stringer 's work. It has been proposed that H. erectus evolved from H. habilis about 2 Mya, though this has been called into question because they coexisted for at least
9996-454: The 87,000 km (34,000 sq mi) of natural forests, about 1,000 km (390 sq mi) disappear every year. Hunting pressures have also increased with a coinciding decline of environmental awareness. South Korea remains one of two countries to allow bear bile farming to continue legally. As reported in 2009, approximately 1,374 Asian black bears reside in an estimated 74 bear farms, where they are kept for slaughter to fuel
10143-623: The American black bear. On average, adult Asian black bears are slightly smaller than American black bears, though large males can exceed the size of several other bear species. The famed British sportsman known as the "Old Shekarry" wrote of how an Asian black bear he shot in India probably weighed no less than 363 kg (800 lb) based on how many people it took to lift its body. The largest Asian black bear on record allegedly weighed 200 kg (440 lb). Zoo-kept specimens can weigh up to 225 kg (496 lb). Although their senses are more acute than those of brown bears, their eyesight
10290-740: The Asian black bear is protected in India, due to being listed as vulnerable in the Red Data Book in Appendix I of CITES in India and in Schedule I of the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act and its 1991 amendment, it has been difficult to prosecute those accused of poaching Asian black bears due to lack of witnesses and lack of Wildlife Forensic Labs to detect the originality of confiscated animal parts or products. Moreover, due to India's wide-stretching boundaries with other nations such as Pakistan, Tibet, China, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Myanmar, it
10437-434: The Asian black species. The first mtDNA study undertaken on Asian black bears suggested that the species arose after the American black bears, while a second study could not statistically resolve the branching order of sloth bears and the two black species, suggesting that these three species underwent a rapid radiation event. A third study suggested that American black bears and Asian black bears diverged as sister taxa after
10584-529: The Chinese island of Hainan . It typically inhabits deciduous forests , mixed forests and thornbrush forests. In the summer, it usually inhabits altitudes of around 3,500 m (11,480 ft) in the Himalayas but rarely above 3,700 m (12,000 ft). In winter, it descends to altitudes below 1,500 m (4,920 ft). In Japan, it also occurs at sea level. There is no definitive estimate as to
10731-576: The Interstate , a bear captured in Sanford, Florida , was thought to have been the offspring of an escaped female Asian black bear and a male American black bear, and Scherren's Some notes on hybrid bears published in 1907 mentioned a successful mating between an Asian black bear and a sloth bear . In 1975, within Venezuela 's "Las Delicias" Zoo, a female Asian black bear shared its enclosure with
10878-480: The Natural and Cultural Heritage Act on, and was later listed as a Conserved Species Category I. The Vietnamese government issued Decision 276/QD, 276/1989, which prohibits the hunting and exporting of Asian black bears. The Red Book of Vietnam lists Vietnamese black bears as endangered. The Korean Government designated the Asian black bear as Natural Monument No. 329 and it is considered an extinction crisis. At
11025-633: The Zhoukoudian or some closely related population. " Wushan Man " was proposed as Homo erectus wushanensis , but is now thought to be based upon fossilized fragments of an extinct non-hominin ape. Since the discovery of Java Man in 1893, there has been a trend in paleoanthropology of reducing the number of proposed species of Homo , to the point where H. erectus includes all early ( Lower Paleolithic ) forms of Homo sufficiently derived from H. habilis and distinct from early H. heidelbergensis (in Africa also known as H. rhodesiensis ). It
11172-495: The age of which can't be established with certainty. Current chronological data comes from a South Branch Cave 30 meters away from where the cranium was found using mass-spectrometric U-series, and a vertebrate tooth using uranium methods. In 1984, the research team re-entered the cave where the Maba Man was found and cleared through the pile of animal fossils at the entry. These had been moved there in 1958, contemporary with
11319-462: The areas still has some isolated small bear populations, mainly the Asian black bears. According to the survey, the most evidence found relating to bears were of Asian black bears that included nests, footprints, local sightings, etc. There are many reports on the presence of Asian black bears in the central, north-central, northeastern and southeastern parts of Bangladesh. Although Asian black bears still occur in different parts of Bangladesh, mainly in
11466-454: The basic cranial features are maintained. In a wider sense, H. erectus had mostly been replaced by H. heidelbergensis by about 300 kya, with possible late survival of H. erectus soloensis in Java an estimated 117-108 kya. Homo erectus is the most long-lived species of Homo , having survived for almost two million years. By contrast, Homo sapiens emerged about a third of a million years ago. Regarding many archaic humans , there
11613-476: The bear to descend. Tigers prey foremost on young bears. Some are very tenacious when attacked: Jim Corbett observed a fight between a tiger and the largest Asian black bear he had ever seen. The bear managed to chase off the tiger, despite having half its nose and scalp torn off. He twice saw Asian black bears carry off tiger kills when the latter was absent. Asian black bears are usually safe from tiger attacks once they reach five years of age. One fatal attack of
11760-578: The beginning of the arboreal specializations attained by sloth bears and sun bears . Asian black bears have karyotypes nearly identical to those of the five other ursine bears, and, as is typical in the genus , they have 74 chromosomes . From an evolutionary perspective, Asian black bears are the least changed of the Old World bears, with certain scientists arguing that it is likely that all other lineages of ursine bear stem from this species. Scientists have proposed that Asian black bears are either
11907-562: The belief that modern humans first evolved in Asia was widely accepted. A few naturalists— Charles Darwin the most prominent among them—theorized that humans' earliest ancestors were African. Darwin had pointed out that chimpanzees and gorillas , humans ' closest relatives, evolved and exist only in Africa. Darwin did not include orangutans among the great apes of the Old World, likely because he thought of orangutans as primitive humans rather than apes. While Darwin considered Africa as
12054-575: The breeding season of Asian black bears occurs earlier than in brown bears, starting from mid-June to mid-August. Birth also occurs earlier, in mid-January. By October, the uterine horns of pregnant females grow to 15–22 mm (0.59–0.87 in). By late December, the embryos weigh 75 grams. Sows generally have their first litter at the age of three years. Pregnant females generally make up 14% of populations. Similar to brown bears, Asian black bears have delayed implantation. Sows usually give birth in caves or hollow trees in winter or early spring after
12201-481: The case. However, the squamous part of occipital bone , particularly the internal occipital crest , at the rear of the skull is notably thicker than that of modern humans, likely a basal (ancestral) trait. The fossil record indicates that H. erectus was the first human species to have featured a projecting nose, which is generally thought to have evolved in response to breathing dry air in order to retain moisture. American psychologist Lucia Jacobs hypothesized that
12348-472: The counties of Hunchun, Dun Hua, Wangqing, An Tu, Chang Bai, Fu Song, Jiao He, Hua Dian, Pan Shi, and Shu Lan. In Heilongjiang province, Asian black bears occur in the counties of Ning An, BaYan, Wu Chang, Tong He, Bao Qing, Fu Yuan, Yi Chun, Tao Shan, Lan Xi, Tie Li, Sun Wu, Ai Hui, De Du, Bei An, and Nen Jiang. This population has a northern boundary of about 50° N and the southern boundary in Feng Cheng
12495-403: The daily energy expenditure (DEE)—the amount of calories metabolized in one day—was estimated to be about 2271.8 and 1909.5 kcal , respectively. This is similar to that of earlier Homo , despite a marked increase in activity and migratory capacity, likely because the longer legs of H. erectus were more energy-efficient in long-distance movement. Nonetheless, the estimate for H. erectus females
12642-528: The decline of old traditional hunters and the increase of a younger generation less inclined to hunt. Logging is also considered a threat. Although Asian black bears have been afforded protection in Russia since 1983, illegal poaching, fueled by a growing demand for bear parts in the Asian market, is still a major threat to the Russian population. Many workers of Chinese and Korean origin, supposedly employed in
12789-496: The demands of traditional Asian medicine. In sharp contrast, fewer than 20 Asian black bears can be found at Jirisan Restoration Center, located in Korea's Jirisan National Park. In Japanese culture, the Asian black bear is traditionally associated with the mountain spirit ( yama no kami ) and is characterized variously as "mountain man" ( yamaotoko ), "mountain uncle" ( yama no ossan ), "mountain father" ( yama no oyaji ),
12936-442: The diet of these hominins. At the 1.5 Mya Trinil H. K. site, Java, H. erectus likely gathered fish and shellfish. Dentally, H. erectus mouths were not as versatile as those of ancestor species, capable of processing a narrower range of foods. However, tools were likely used to process hard foods, thus affecting the chewing apparatus. This combination may have instead increased dietary flexibility (though this does not equate to
13083-443: The discovery of Maba Man. Two stone tools (KP84001 and KP84002) were revealed. The Lion Cave (Shiziyan) has four roughly-defined strata. KP84001 and KP84002 were found in the second stratum. They were made of gravel . The bulb of percussions of both stone tools are mostly blurry. The hypothesis is that the gravel used for the stone tools came from the nearby river bank and bench where the lithology belongs to quartzite . KP84001
13230-445: The emergence of H. erectus with fire usage nor with any technological breakthrough for that matter, and cooking likely did not become a common practice until after 400 kya. Java Man's dispersal through Southeast Asia coincides with the extirpation of the giant turtle Megalochelys , possibly due to overhunting as the turtle would have been an easy, slow-moving target which could have been stored for quite some time. H. erectus
13377-630: The estimates of 7–9,000 in India and 1,000 in Pakistan. Unsubstantiated estimates from China give varying estimates between 15 and 46,000, with a government estimate of 28,000. The Wildlife Trust of Bangladesh conducted an on-field survey of bears in Bangladesh from 2008 to 2010 that included Asian black bears. The survey was done in 87 different places, mostly in the north-central, northeastern and southeastern areas of Bangladesh that had historical presence of bears. The survey result says that most of
13524-578: The excess calories as fat, and then hibernate during times of scarcity. Asian black bears will eat pine nuts and acorns of the previous year in the April–May period. In times of scarcity, they enter river valleys to gain access to hazelnuts and insect larvae in rotting logs. From mid-May through late June, they will supplement their diet with green vegetation and fruit. Through July to September, they will climb trees to eat bird cherries, pine cones , vines and grapes. On rare occasions they will eat dead fish during
13671-479: The eyes, and transitions into a bar covering the ears, connecting all the way in the back of the skull, meaning blows to any of these regions can be effectively dissipated across the skull; and the sagittal keel protects the top of the braincase. Many skullcaps bear usually debilitating fractures, such as the Peking Man skull X, yet they can show signs of surviving and healing. Anthropologist Peter Brown suggested
13818-415: The fact that some modern populations have not seen any dramatic brain size increase relative to H. erectus with most of the increase occurring in northern populations, which has the result of obscuring interpopulational variation. As the authors write '...the increase in the mean of H. sapiens cranial capacity is to a large extent due to an increase in the upper limit with a much less pronounced increase in
13965-412: The faster brain growth trajectory of great apes than modern humans. This indicates that H. erectus was probably not cognitively comparable to modern humans, and that secondary altriciality —an extended childhood and long period of dependency due to the great amount of time required for brain maturation—evolved much later in human evolution, perhaps in the modern human/Neanderthal last common ancestor. It
14112-452: The first in the Homo lineage. H. erectus tracks near Ileret , Kenya, also indicate a human gait . A humanlike shoulder suggests an ability for high speed throwing. It was once thought that Turkana boy had 6 lumbar vertebra instead of the 5 seen in modern humans and 11 instead of 12 thoracic vertebrae , but this has since been revised, and the specimen is now considered to have exhibited
14259-404: The government to private interests has the potential to affect some lowland habitat, particularly in the eastern part of the nation. The building of new cross island highways through bear habitat is also potentially threatening. Vietnamese black bear populations have declined rapidly due to the pressures of human population growth and unstable settlement. Vietnamese forests have been shrinking: of
14406-426: The ground or in rocks, thus making them more vulnerable to tigers, brown bears and hunters. In Taiwan, Asian black bears are not actively pursued, though steel traps set out for wild boars have been responsible for unintentional bear trappings. Timber harvesting has largely stopped being a major threat to Taiwan's Asian black bear population, though a new policy concerning the transfer of ownership of hill land from
14553-619: The ground, hollow logs, or steep, mountainous and sunny slopes. They may also den in abandoned brown bear dens. Asian black bears tend to den at lower elevations and on less steep slopes than brown bears. Female Asian black bears emerge from dens later than do males, and female Asian black bears with cubs emerge later than barren females. Asian black bears tend to be less mobile than brown bears. With sufficient food, Asian black bears can remain in an area of roughly 1–2 km (0.39–0.77 sq mi), and sometimes even as little as 0.5–1 km (0.19–0.39 sq mi). Asian black bears have
14700-647: The habitat and to increase the genetic diversity of the Asian black bears in Mt. Jiri. In Siberia, the Asian black bear's northern range runs from Innokenti Bay on the coast of the Sea of Japan southwest to the elevated areas of Sikhote Alin crossing it at the sources of the Samarga River. At this point, the boundary directs itself to the north, through the middle course of the Khor , Anyui and Khungari rivers, and comes to
14847-509: The increasing dependence on meat. With an emphasis on teamwork, division of labor, and food sharing, hunting and gathering was a dramatically different subsistence strategy from previous modes. H. erectus sites frequently are associated with assemblages of medium- to large-sized game, namely elephants , rhinos , hippos , bovines , and boars . H. erectus would have had considerable leftovers, potentially pointing to food sharing or long-term food preservation (such as by drying) if most of
14994-752: The kill was indeed utilized. It is possible that H. erectus grew to become quite dependent on large-animal meat, and the disappearance of H. erectus from the Levant is correlated with the local extinction of the straight-tusked elephant . Nonetheless, H. erectus diet likely varied widely depending upon location. For example, at the 780 kya Gesher Benot Ya'aqov site, Israel, the inhabitants gathered and ate 55 different types of fruits, vegetables, seeds, nuts, and tubers, and it appears that they used fire to roast certain plant materials that otherwise would have been inedible; they also consumed amphibians, reptiles, birds, aquatic and terrestrial invertebrates, in addition to
15141-400: The large ape gut is used to synthesize fat by fermenting plant matter, which was replaced by dietary animal fat, allowing more energy to be diverted to brain growth. This would have increased brain size indirectly while maintaining the same caloric requirements of ancestor species. H. erectus may have also been the first to use a hunting and gathering food collecting strategy as a response to
15288-596: The largest scale." (1889, pp. 155–156). In 1949, the species was reported in Swartkrans Cave, South Africa, by South African paleoanthropologists Robert Broom and John Talbot Robinson , who described it as " Telanthropus capensis ". Homo fossils have also been reported from nearby caves, but their species designation has been a tumultuous discussion. A few North African sites have additionally yielded H. erectus remains, which at first were classified as " Atlantanthropus mauritanicus " in 1951. Beginning in
15435-552: The limbs) is extremely narrowed (medullary stenosis ). This degree of thickening is usually exhibited in semi-aquatic animals which used their heavy ( pachyosteosclerotic ) bones as ballasts to help them sink, induced by hypothyroidism . Male specimens have thicker cortical bone than females. It is largely unclear what function this could have served. All pathological inducers would leave scarring or some other indicator not normally exhibited in H. erectus . Before more complete skeletons were discovered, Weidenreich suggested H. erectus
15582-415: The low success rate, female parties focus on more predictable foods. Based on modern day savanna chimp and baboon group composition and behavior, H. erectus ergaster may have lived in large, multi-male groups in order to defend against large savanna predators in the open and exposed environment. However, dispersal patterns indicate that H. erectus generally avoided areas with high carnivore density. It
15729-424: The lower limit relative to our H. erectus sample. And this increase in the upper limit seems to be more pronounced in northern populations – which may be a result of correlated increases in body size in addition to climatic factors. Consequently, the authors argue that purely based on brain size similarities, Asian H. erectus could be re-classified as a subspecies of H. sapiens , that is H. sapiens soloensis - as
15876-469: The lumbering units belonging to the county). By the early 1990s, the Asian black bear distribution area was reduced to only one-fifth of the area that existed before the 1940s. Isolated bear populations face environmental and genetic stress in these circumstances. However, one of the most important reasons for their decrease involves overhunting, as Asian black bear paws, gall bladders and cubs have great economic value. Asian black bear harvests are maintained at
16023-433: The main threats faced by Asian black bears in India. Although the poaching of Asian black bears is well known throughout Japan, authorities have done little to remedy the situation. The killing of nuisance bears is practiced year-round, and harvest numbers have been on the increase. Box traps have been widely used since 1970 to capture nuisance bears. It is estimated that the number of shot bears will decrease in time, due to
16170-661: The most probable birthplace of human ancestors, he also made the following statement about the geographic location of human origins in his book The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex : "... it is useless to speculate on this subject; for two or three anthropomorphous apes, one the Dryopithecus …, existed in Europe during the Miocene age; and since so remote a period the earth has certainly undergone many great revolutions, and there has been ample time for migration on
16317-466: The most productive H. erectus site in the world. Continued interest in Java led to further H. erectus fossil discoveries at Ngandong ( Solo Man ) in 1931, Mojokerto (Java Man) in 1936, and Sangiran (Java Man) in 1937. The Sangiran site yielded the best preserved Java Man skull. German paleoanthropologist Franz Weidenreich provided much of the detailed description of the Chinese specimens in several monographs. The original specimens were lost during
16464-402: The mouth as a third hand to carry objects. In 2004, Noel Boaz and Russel Ciochon suggested it was a result of a cultural practice, wherein H. erectus would fight each other with fists, stones, or clubs to settle disputes or battle for mates, since the skull is reinforced in key areas. The mandible is quite robust, capable of absorbing heavy blows (no "glass jaw"); the heavy brow ridge protects
16611-409: The nighttime temperature can drop to 10 or 5 °C (50 or 41 °F)—so they may have required hair to stay warm, unlike early Homo which inhabited lower, hotter elevations. Populations in higher latitudes potentially developed lighter skin to prevent vitamin D deficiency . A 500–300 kya H. erectus specimen from Turkey was diagnosed with the earliest known case of tuberculous meningitis , which
16758-520: The number of Asian black bears: Japan posed estimates of 8–14,000 bears living on Honshū, though the reliability of this is now doubted. Although their reliability is unclear, rangewide estimates of 5–6,000 bears have been presented by Russian biologists. In 2012, Japanese Ministry of the Environment estimated the population at 15–20,000. Rough density estimates without corroborating methodology or data have been made in India and Pakistan, resulting in
16905-403: The opportunity arose. Maintaining fires would require firekeepers to have knowledge of slow-burning materials such as dung. Fire becomes markedly more abundant in the wider archaeological record after 400,000–300,000 years ago, which can be explained as some advancement in fire management techniques took place at this time or human ancestors only opportunistically used fire until this time. It
17052-496: The other Pleistocene Chinese hominid specimens have a rounded margin, Maba 1 has a sharp one. Dating of the Maba 1 human fossil is problematic. It could possibly go back to the Middle Pleistocene , the Middle-Late Pleistocene transition, and Late Pleistocene , roughly between 300 and 130 ka. The uncertainty of the dating is due to the fact that the original stratigraphic section is in a deep and narrow crevice
17199-410: The outcome of such encounters is largely dependent on the size of the individual animals. Tigers occasionally attack and consume Asian black bears. Russian hunters found their remains in tiger scats, and Asian black bear carcasses showing evidence of tiger predation. To escape tigers, Asian black bears rush up a tree and wait for the tiger to leave, though some tigers will pretend to leave, and wait for
17346-443: The practical application of this is unclear. Nonetheless, the mandibular bodies of H. erectus are somewhat thinner than those of early Homo . The premolars and molars also have a higher frequency of pits than H. habilis , suggesting H. erectus ate more brittle foods (which cause pitting). These all indicate that the H. erectus mouth was less capable of processing hard foods and more at shearing through tougher foods, thus reducing
17493-591: The present time, the Endangered Species Restoration Center of Korea National Park Service is going through species restoration business. The main habitat threat to Asian black bears is overcutting of forests, mainly due to human populations increasing to over 430,000 in regions where bears are distributed, in the Shaanxi, Ganshu, and Sichuan provinces. 27 forestry enterprises were built in these areas between 1950 and 1985 (excluding
17640-579: The projecting nose instead allowed for distinguishing the direction different smells come from (stereo olfaction) to facilitate navigation and long-distance migration. The average brain size of Asian H. erectus is about 1,000 cc (61 cu in). However, markedly smaller specimens have been found in Dmanisi, Georgia ( H. e. georgicus ); Koobi Fora and Olorgesailie , Kenya; and possibly Gona , Ethiopia. Overall, H. erectus brain size varies from 546–1,251 cc (33.3–76.3 cu in), which
17787-419: The protagonist's father as being among the most dangerous animals in his zoo. Although usually shy and cautious animals, Asian black bears are more aggressive towards humans than the brown bears of Eurasia and American black bears. David W. Macdonald theorizes that this greater aggression is an adaptation to being sympatric with tigers. According to Brigadier General R. G. Burton: The Himalayan black bear
17934-400: The range of variation of H. erectus to perhaps include species as H. rudolfensis , H. gautengensis , H. ergaster , and perhaps H. habilis . However, a 2015 study suggested that H. georgicus represents an earlier, more primitive species of Homo derived from an older dispersal of hominins from Africa, with H. ergaster/erectus possibly deriving from a later dispersal. H. georgicus
18081-553: The reconstruction of the skull is accurate, the upper face morphology of the Maba 1 is similar to Neanderthals with a prominent nose and thick parietal bone at the bregma . The vertical frontal squama and thin vault is similar to modern humans. Although we don't have a precise measurement of cranial capacity , 1300 cc is the estimated cranial capacity assigned to Maba 1. This is in a range similar to modern humans and Neanderthals' cranial capacities. The almost completely fused main cranial sutures , less pronounced muscular crests, and
18228-605: The right upper face, with parts of the nose also still attached. The scientists saw a connection with Homo erectus because the brow ridges were pronounced, forming an arch over each eye, and the bones of the brain-case were low and thick. Even so, the brain was apparently larger than that of H. erectus, though precise measurement of cranial capacity is not possible, as the skull's base is incomplete. Showing not only characteristics of H. erectus, archaic H. sapiens and H. heidelbergensis, Maba 1 (museum number PA 84) also exhibits traits representing modern humans and Neanderthals . If
18375-410: The rock piles were used to support poles stuck into the ground, possibly to support a windbreak or a rough hut. Some modern-day nomadic tribes build similar low-lying rock walls to build temporary shelters upon, bending upright branches as poles and using grasses or animal hide as a screen. Dating to 1.75 Mya, it is the oldest claimed evidence of architecture. The earliest evidence of cave habitation
18522-421: The rough external surface of the skull indicate the possibility of Maba 1 being a middle-aged male. Postero-lateral to the right frontal tubercle , Maba 1's extracranial surface exhibits a 14 mm long crescent scar. On the intracranial surface roughly at the same position, a hump about the same size exists. One feature that is worth mentioning is the inferior lateral orbital margin of Maba 1. While most of
18669-617: The shore of the Amur, crossing it at the level of the mouth of the Gorin River. Along the Amur river, the species' presence has been noted as far as 51° N. Lat. From there, the territorial boundary runs southwest of the river's left bank, passing through the northern part of Lake Bolon and the juncture point of the Kur and Tunguska . Asian black bears are encountered in the Urmi's lower course. Within
18816-580: The site, and the two seemed to coexist for some time. The earliest records of Acheulean technology outside of Africa date to no older than 1 Mya, indicating it only became widespread after some secondary H. erectus dispersal from Africa. On Java, H. erectus produced tools from shells at Sangiran and Trinil. Spherical stones, measuring 6–12 cm (2.4–4.7 in) in diameter, are frequently found in African and Chinese Lower Paleolithic sites, and were potentially used as bolas ; if correct, this would indicate string and cordage technology. H. erectus
18963-584: The skin exposed to harmful UV radiation . It is possible that exposed skin only became maladaptive in the Pleistocene, because the increasing tilt of the Earth (which also caused the ice ages ) would have increased solar radiation bombardment- which would suggest that hairlessness first emerged in the australopithecines. However, australopithecines seem to have lived at much higher, much colder elevations—typically 1,000–1,600 m (3,300–5,200 ft) where
19110-482: The sloth bear lineage and before the sun bear lineage. Further investigations on the entire mitochondrial cytochrome b sequence indicate that the divergence of continental Asian and Japanese black bear populations might have occurred when bears crossed the land bridge between the Korean peninsula and Japan 500,000 years ago, which is consistent with paleontological evidence. [REDACTED] [REDACTED] Until
19257-631: The spawning season, though this constitutes a much lesser portion of their diet than in brown bears. In the 1970s, Asian black bears were reported to kill and eat Hanuman langurs in Nepal. They appear to be more carnivorous than most other bears, including American black bears , and will kill ungulates with some regularity, including domestic livestock. Wild ungulate prey can include muntjacs , serow , takin , malayan tapir wild boar and adult water buffaloes , which they kill by breaking their necks. The Asian black bear's range overlaps with that of
19404-436: The timber industry, are actually involved in the illegal trade. Some Russian sailors reportedly purchase bear parts from local hunters to sell them to Japanese and Southeast Asian clients. Russia's rapidly growing timber industry has been a serious threat to the Asian black bear's home range for three decades. The cutting of trees containing cavities deprives Asian black bears of their main source of dens, and forces them to den on
19551-484: The time, they largely dismissed his findings as a malformed non-human ape. The significance of these fossils would not be realized until the 1927 discovery of what Canadian paleoanthropologist Davidson Black called " Sinanthropus pekinensis " (Peking Man) at the Zhoukoudian cave near Beijing , China. Black lobbied across North America and Europe for funding to continue excavating the site, which has since become
19698-515: The two, was the immediate ancestor of other archaic humans and modern humans. It has been proposed that Asian H. erectus have several unique characteristics from non-Asian populations ( autapomorphies ), but there is no clear consensus on what these characteristics are or if they are indeed limited to only Asia. Based on supposed derived characteristics, the 120 kya Javan H. e. soloensis has been proposed to have speciated from H. erectus , as H. soloensis , but this has been challenged because most of
19845-592: The usual large creatures such as elephant and fallow deer . At the 1.95 Mya FwJJ20 lakeside site in the East Turkana Basin, Kenya, the inhabitants ate (alongside the usual bovids, hippos, and rhinos) aquatic creatures such as turtles , crocodiles , and catfish . The large animals were likely scavenged at this site, but the turtles and fish were possibly collected live. In East Africa between 2.0 and 1.4 Mya, carcasses of C 4 -grazing ungulates, particularly alcelaphins , featured increasingly prominently in
19992-447: The variety of foods it could process, likely as a response to tool use. Like modern humans, H. erectus varied widely in size, ranging from 146–185 cm (4 ft 9 in – 6 ft 1 in) in height and 40–68 kg (88–150 lb) in weight, thought to be due to regional differences in climate, mortality rates, or nutrition. Among primates, this marked of a response to environmental stressors ( phenotypic plasticity )
20139-466: The weight ratio of the two pterygoid muscles is also much smaller in Asian black bears. The lateral slips of the temporal muscles are thicker and stronger in Asian black bears. In contrast to the polar bear , the Asian black bear has a powerful upper body for climbing trees , and relatively weak hind legs which are shorter than those in the brown bear and American black bear . An Asian black bear with broken hind legs can still climb effectively. It
20286-501: The wild of Jirisan. If the Korea National Park Service releases three cubs born in natural adaptation training centers at September this year, the number of Asian black bears living in the wild will increase to 59. As a result, the restoration of the target of 50 Asian black bears, or the minimum remaining population, will be achieved two years earlier. It was a goal by 2020. Their next goal is to expand and improve
20433-496: Was German naturalist Ernst Haeckel , who argued that the first human species evolved on the now-disproven hypothetical continent " Lemuria " in what is now Southeast Asia, from a species he termed " Pithecanthropus alalus " ("speechless apeman"). "Lemuria" had supposedly sunk below the Indian Ocean , so no fossils could be found to prove this. Nevertheless, Haeckel's model inspired Dutch scientist Eugène Dubois to journey to
20580-401: Was a gigantic species, thickened bone required to support the massive weight. It was hypothesized that intense physical activity could have induced bone thickening, but in 1970, human biologist Stanley Marion Garn demonstrated there is a low correlation between the two at least in modern humans. Garn instead noted different races have different average cortical bone thicknesses, and concluded it
20727-601: Was an apex predator ; sites generally show consumption of medium to large animals, such as bovines or elephants , and suggest the development of predatory behavior and coordinated hunting. H. erectus is associated with the Acheulean stone tool industry , and is postulated to have been the earliest human ancestor capable of using fire, hunting and gathering in coordinated groups, caring for injured or sick group members, and possibly seafaring and art (though examples of art are controversial, and are otherwise rudimentary and few and far between). Intentional seafaring has also been
20874-495: Was anatomically capable of speech, though it is postulated they communicated using some proto-language . Contrary to the view Charles Darwin expressed in his 1871 book Descent of Man , many late-19th century evolutionary naturalists postulated that Asia, not Africa, was the birthplace of humankind as it is midway between Europe and America, providing optimal dispersal routes throughout the world (the Out of Asia theory ). Among these
21021-417: Was previously believed that, based on the narrow pelvis of Turkana boy, H. erectus could only safely deliver a baby with a brain volume of about 230 cc (14 cu in), equating to a similar brain growth rate as modern humans to achieve the average adult brain size of 600–1,067 cc (36.6–65.1 cu in). However, a 1.8 Ma female pelvis from Gona, Ethiopia, shows that H. erectus babies with
21168-496: Was suggested by earlier authors. Dentally, H. erectus have the thinnest enamel of any Plio–Pleistocene hominin. Enamel prevents the tooth from breaking from hard foods but impedes shearing through tough foods. The bodies of the mandibles of H. erectus , and all early Homo , are thicker than those of modern humans and all living apes. The mandibular body resists torsion from the bite force or chewing, meaning their jaws could produce unusually powerful stresses while eating, but
21315-509: Was the first human ancestor to spread throughout Eurasia , with a continental range extending from the Iberian Peninsula to Java . Asian populations of H. erectus may be ancestral to H. floresiensis and possibly to H. luzonensis . The last known population of H. erectus is H. e. soloensis from Java, around 117,000–108,000 years ago. H. erectus had a more modern gait and body proportions, and
21462-410: Was the first human species to have exhibited a flat face, prominent nose, and possibly sparse body hair coverage. Though the species' brain size certainly exceeds that of ancestor species, capacity varied widely depending on the population. In earlier populations, brain development seemed to cease early in childhood, suggesting that offspring matured faster, thus limiting cognitive development. H. erectus
21609-500: Was undetermined. Another case that depicts the difficulty of assigning sex to the fossil record is a few samples taken in Olduvai Gorge. In 1960, in Olduvai Gorge two skulls identified as OH12 and OH9, were found to be that of H. erectus with a cranial capacities of 1000 cc and 700 cc. It is unclear if sexual dimorphism is at play here since the remains are fragmentary. If H. erectus did not exhibit sexual dimorphism, then it
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