Ida

[sevfiv]

In a new book, documentary, and promotional Web site, paleontologist Jorn Hurum, who led the team that analyzed the 47-million-year-old fossil seen above, suggests Ida is a critical missing-0link species in primate evolution.

The fossil, he says, bridges the evolutionary split between higher primates such as monkeys, apes, and humans and their more distant relatives such as lemurs.

"This is the first link to all humans," Hurum, of the Natural History Museum in Oslo, Norway, said in a statement. Ida represents "the closest thing we can get to a direct ancestor."

Ida, properly known as Darwinius masillae, has a unique anatomy. The lemur-like skeleton features primate-like characteristics, including grasping hands, opposable thumbs, clawless digits with nails, and relatively short limbs.

"This specimen looks like a really early fossil monkey that belongs to the group that includes us," said Brian Richmond, a biological anthropologist at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., who was not involved in the study.

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/20...link-found.html

[sheeats]

I'm such a sucker, but for some reason it made me very sad when they described how young she was (only nine months) and the assumed circumstances of her demise (CO2 poisoning?). You know you're way too tender-hearted when stories about fossils make you sad.

[LTAWACS]

Interesting news. I saw a pic of the fossil the other day. Does indeed look primate-like.

[LTAWACS]

I also wonder what impact this will have on the religious establishment and how they will react.