Why did some ancient human cousins have super strong teeth?
FUNCTIONAL MORPHOLOGY, STABLE ISOTOPES, AND HUMAN EVOLUTION: A MODEL OF CONSILIENCE
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
Stiff foods like USOs were likely fallbacks, not preferred foods, for Paranthropus.
This contradicts the intuitive idea that animals with strong teeth must have eaten tough foods all the time. Instead, the model suggests they only turned to these foods when necessary.
Practical Takeaways
Understand that physical traits in evolution often serve emergency or backup functions, not just daily use.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
Stiff foods like USOs were likely fallbacks, not preferred foods, for Paranthropus.
This contradicts the intuitive idea that animals with strong teeth must have eaten tough foods all the time. Instead, the model suggests they only turned to these foods when necessary.
Practical Takeaways
Understand that physical traits in evolution often serve emergency or backup functions, not just daily use.
Publication
Journal
Evolution
Year
2012
Authors
J. Yeakel, N. Dominy, P. Koch, M. Mangel
Related Content
Claims (3)
Big, thick teeth in some ancient human relatives might have made it easier to chew tough foods like roots and tubers when their usual food wasn't available.
Big teeth in Paranthropus might have helped them survive tough times by letting them eat hard backup foods when their usual meals weren’t available — explaining why their teeth look worn in surprising ways.
Primates with thicker tooth enamel tend to eat harder, tougher foods — probably because thicker enamel helps their teeth survive the heavy crunching without cracking.