Examining convergence in equids and ursids to understand potential hominin adaptiveness to the cold.
Open AccessOne of the most controversial hominins in adaptational research are the Neanderthals (Homo neanderthalensis). Proponents argue that Neanderthals were cold-adapted hominins (Wroe et al., 2018; de Azevedo et al., 2017; Steegmann et al., 2002; Condemi, 1998), while skeptics argue against (Rae et al., 2011). Given that adaptive systems exist in extant taxa that allow for selective forces to reshape organisms for maximal fitness suggest that extinct taxa operated under same basic principles. However, one of the most difficult parts about research on adaptations, especially when dealing with extinct taxa, is choosing an “appropriate” model for comparative research. The first instinct one has is to select a model that is close enough to the taxon of interest to yield results – but that is a problem in itself because close representatives may be few and far between. Other pitfalls of research on adaptation are that it’s either A) hard to understand the adaptive purpose of some novel configurations or B) some configurations are not adaptive, but a form of neutral variation. In the world of paleoanthropology and the study of human evolution, adaptive modules are even trickier and further restricted due to the fact that there is only one hominin species alive today and only a handful of extinct hominins that can be used for comparative studies, restricting adaptative research in extant and extinct hominins. The purpose of this study is to examine if convergent phenotypes exist elsewhere within mammalian phylogeny to compare to Neanderthals and Homo sapiens of different latitudes.
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Henderson_gwu_0075M_15542.pdf | 2022-03-06 | Open Access |
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