Researchers have uncovered fossils belonging to a previously unknown ancient human relative. And they may have lived in the same time and place as the earliest-known members of the genus Homo, from which modern humans evolved, according to a new study.<\/p>\n
A team of archeologists working at Ethiopia\u2019s Ledi-Geraru research project area unearthed a set of fossilized teeth that likely belonged to an unidentified species within the Australopithecus genus, known for having both human- and ape-like traits. The findings are published in Nature<\/a>.<\/p>\n Until now, scientists have discovered six Australopithecus species in sites in Africa, including the famous Lucy fossil<\/a>. But not all of these species intersected with our earliest human ancestors in the genus Homo.<\/p>\n The newly found teeth, from two individuals, date back 2.6 to 2.8 million years. While they share some characteristics with other Australopithecus species, comparisons with nearby fossils and other hominin specimens indicate they are distinct enough to be considered a new species.<\/p>\n At the same site, the scientists also discovered three other teeth that likely belonged to members of the earliest species of Homo, dating to 2.59 million years ago. That species was first identified in 2013 through a jawbone at the same study site.<\/p>\n These discoveries suggest that as many as four early human-like lineages\u2014Homo, Paranthropus, Australopithecus garhi, and the newly identified species\u2014may have coexisted in East Africa between 2.5 and 3.0 million years ago.<\/p>\n