In general, the dentition of A. africanus is more specialized than the dentition of A. afarensis. The molar teeth are relatively larger in size than the earlier form. This suggests an increasing emphasis on chewing foods that required the heavy use of the back teeth. Based on this information it is assumed that A. africanus and A. afarensis may have eaten different foods, with A. africanus developing features that allowed for powerful chewing of the molar teeth. Wear on the teeth, viewed through an electron microscope, indicates that A. africanus ate mostly soft foods. This is in contrast to the grittier diet of the later australopithecines, A. robustus and A.boisei .

The size of A. africanus teeth is still striking in contrast to our teeth, which are much smaller . The shape of the jaw is still different from ours as well. The rows of teeth in A. africanus are more parallel rather than being parabolic in shape like ours. The incisors are angled forward instead of being verticle in position, as they are in modern man. Still, A. africanus dentition is closer to ours than any previous hominid and more in line with that of early Homo that will follow.

RETURN TO HOMINID JOURNEY