Palaeontologia africana

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ISSN (print): 0078-8554 ISSN (electronic): 2410-4418 For queries regarding content of Palaeontologia africana collections please contact Jonah Choiniere by email : jonah.choiniere@wits.ac.za or Tel : 011 717 6684

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    New evidence of the Giant Hyaena, Pachycrocuta brevirostris (Carnivora, Hyaenidae), from the Gladysvale Cave deposit (Plio-pleistocene, John Nash Nature Reserve, Gauteng, South Africa)
    (Bernard Price Institute for Palaeontological Research, 2001) Mutter, Raoul J; Berger, Lee R; Schmid, Peter
    A well preserved cranium which represents the most complete skull of Pachycrocuta brevirostris (Carnivora, Hyaenidae) discovered in Africa, and a maxillary fragment from the Gladysvale Cave Deposit (John Nash Nature Reserve, Gauteng, South Africa) are described and compared to other fossil and extant hyaenid specimens from South Africa and Europe. In addition, some aspects of functional morphology in the hyaenid dentition are reconsidered and suggested to be directly related to the palaeoecological role of P. brevirostris.
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    Morphometric analysis of modern human crania: a framework for assessing early Pleistocene homonids
    (2012-12) Odes, E.J.; Thackeray, J.F.
    Craniofacial measurements have been obtained from modern human skulls from cadavers representing several southern African population groups including Ndebele, Shangaan, Sotho, Swazi, Tswana, Xhosa and Zulu, in addition to European Homo sapiens. The measurements were obtained from crania in the Dart Collection housed at the School of Anatomical Sciences of the University of the Witwatersrand. Pairwise comparisons, using least squares linear regression analysis of cranial measurements, were used to calculate the standard error of them-coefficient associated with the general equation y = mx + c, where m is the slope of the regression line. The standard error of the m-coefficient is a measure of the degree of similarity between specimens. Log transformed s.e.m values (log s.e.m) show a normal distribution with a mean value of –1.84 ± 0.087 (n = 384 pairwise comparisons). These results can be used as a frame of reference for comparing Early Pleistocene specimens. For example, a comparison between KNM-ER 1813 (attributed to H. habilis) and KNM-ER 3733 (attributed to H. erectus or H. ergaster) is associated with a log s.e.m value of –1.844. Despite differences in size, these two penecontemporary hominid fossils are associated with a high probability of conspecificity, since the log s.e.m value is identical to the mean log s.e.m value of –1.84 obtained for pairwise comparisons of modern Homo sapiens.