200万年前，南方古猿、傍人和灵长目人科的人属物种都曾在今天的南非地区生活。法国研究人员日前分析这三者的牙齿化石后发现，其饮食习惯存在很大差异。相关论文发表在8月8日的《自然》杂志上。
自20世纪30年代末开始，南非陆续出土古人类物种化石。一些地球化学和生物学家对在南非发现的南方古猿、傍人和人属化石进行研究，揭示出其饮食特点。
一般来说，越处于食物链顶端的哺乳动物，其组织中的锶元素和钡元素就越少。法国研究人员利用激光切除技术对上述3大物种的化石牙釉质进行分析，发现最早约500万年前出现的南方古猿的饮食比较“随机”，它们进食一切能吃的东西，其食谱中既有浆果，也包含动物骨骼等。
大约200万年前，可能由南方古猿进化而来的傍人和人属，其饮食范围相对更集中。傍人爱吃植物，甚至包括难以咀嚼的植物根茎。而人属则更偏向肉食，他们极有可能会借助工具，主要以狩猎为生。傍人和人属共同生活了将近100万年，直至前者因某个未知原因而消失。
参与这项研究者认为，这些发现有助于专家更好地了解人类在生物和社会方面的进化过程。（生物谷Bioon.com）
doi:10.1038/nature11349
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Evidence for dietary change but not landscape use in South African early hominins
Vincent Balter,1 José Braga,2 Philippe Télouk1 & J. Francis Thackeray3
The dichotomy between early Homo and Paranthropus is justified partly on morphology1, 2. In terms of diet, it has been suggested that early Homo was a generalist but that Paranthropus was a specialist3. However, this model is challenged and the issue of the resources used by Australopithecus, the presumed common ancestor, is still unclear. Laser ablation profiles of strontium/calcium, barium/calcium and strontium isotope ratios in tooth enamel are a means to decipher intra-individual diet and habitat changes. Here we show that the home range area was of similar size for species of the three hominin genera but that the dietary breadth was much higher in Australopithecus africanus than in Paranthropus robustus and early Homo. We also confirm that P. robustus relied more on plant-based foodstuffs than early Homo. A South African scenario is emerging in which the broad ecological niche of Australopithecus became split, and was then occupied by Paranthropus and early Homo, both consuming a lower diversity of foods than Australopithecus.
