The joints of the evolving foot. Part III. The fossil evidence

Abstract

The fossil record supports the conclusions derived from the study of extant species that the Primates evolved a unique suite of characters in the articulations of the foot. The tarsal bones of African Miocene apes show specializations characteristic of hominoid evolution and provide reasonable precursors for the morphology of Pan, Gorilla and even Pongo. The OH8 foot is essentially ape-like in it major features, with many close resemblances to Pan. Although fairly clearly from a bipedal primate, it lacked important functional specializations found in the human foot.