Recently, scientists discovered a femur fossil in Chad, Africa, dating back approximately 7 million years, offering new and crucial evidence that early human ancestors walked upright. The fossil belongs to Sahelanthropus tchadensis, one of the oldest known hominins, and was found near the site where the famous ‘Toumaï’ skull was unearthed in 2001. Using high-resolution CT scans and morphological analysis, researchers observed features in the femur—such as neck angle and shaft robustness—that are consistent with habitual bipedal locomotion, similar to later Australopithecines. While earlier debates questioned whether Sahelanthropus truly walked upright—based largely on the forward-positioned foramen magnum in its skull suggesting an upright posture—conclusive limb bone evidence was lacking. This discovery fills that gap, indicating that bipedalism may have emerged in the human lineage as early as 7 million years ago, earlier than previously thought. The finding not only prompts a reevaluation of the timeline of human evolution but also underscores the critical role of Central Africa in our ancestral story.
近日，科学家在非洲乍得发现了一块距今约700万年前的股骨化石，为人类祖先早期直立行走提供了新的关键证据。这块化石属于已知最古老的人科成员之一——萨赫勒人（Sahelanthropus tchadensis），其发现地点与2001年著名的‘图迈’（Toumaï）头骨化石相近。研究团队通过高精度CT扫描和形态学分析发现，该股骨的结构显示出适应双足直立行走的特征，例如股骨颈角度和骨干粗壮度与后来的南方古猿相似。尽管此前关于萨赫勒人是否真正直立行走存在争议，主要因其颅骨枕骨大孔位置暗示可能具备直立姿态，但缺乏肢骨证据。此次发现填补了这一空白，表明早在700万年前，人类谱系可能已开始向两足行走演化，比此前普遍认为的时间更早。这一成果不仅推动了对人类起源时间线的重新评估，也强调了非洲中部在人类演化中的关键地位。
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