But there’s now only one species of human on the planet, and in the simplified view of evolution most of us have, that’s all there has ever been. A few million years ago, most of scientists think, the half-ape know as Lucy appeared in Africa; she was a less ape like creature, who evolved into something more human like. Finally, after a few more changes, Homo Sapiens appeared. Except for that odd side branch know as the Neanderthals, the path from proto-apes to modern humans is commonly seen as a succession of new and improved species taking the place of worn-out evolutionary clunkers.

It’s a satisfying, if slightly chauvinistic tale, but experts in human evolution have

As recently as five years ago, all that scientists could really tell about our earliest ancestors was when they first appeared. Molecular biologists had measured the differences between human and chimpanzee DNA then averaged the rate of genetic change over time. By calculating backward, they determined that great apes and hominids branched from a common ancestors between 6 million and 4 million years ago. Although no fossils were on hand to support this scenario. The oldest hominid species know, Australopithecus Afarensis, could be dated back only 3.6 million years. Its most famous member, Lucy dug up in Ethiopia in 1974, is only 3.2 million years. Then, in 1994 teams working in Ethiopia announced that they had found a new species of hominid. The discovery smashed the 4 million-year barrier. The scientist dug up bones and teeth of 17 individuals. Given their age, there was no surprised they showed a mix of chimpanzee- like and human traits that as a whole are more primitive than those of Lucy.

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