非洲和中国直立人某些颅骨特征的比较——中国与非洲人类头骨特征对比之一

THE COMPARISONS OF SOME CRANIAL MORPHOLOGICAL FEATURES BETWEEN THE AFRICAN AND CHINESE Homo erectus

针对学术界有关非洲与亚洲直立人关系的争论 ,本文对一些用来支持非洲早期直立人从直立人中分离出来而归入匠人的主要形态学证据进行了检验。用于研究的标本包括迄今在东非发现的年代最早的直立人KNM ER 3733、KNM ER 3883和KNM WT 15 0 0 0头骨化石。这些化石是被提倡非洲与亚洲的直立人分属两个种的学者归入匠人的主要标本。对这些非洲早期直立人与中国直立人 18项头骨特征对比显示 :一些被认为是局限于亚洲直立人的独有特征在上述非洲直立人头骨都有出现。存在于非洲直立人与中国直立人之间颅骨特征上的差别主要体现在特征的表现程度与方式的不同。作者认为根据本文对比的颅骨特征 ,非洲直立人与中国直立人在颅骨形态上非常相似 ,他们之间的形态差异反映了直立人具有较宽的形态变异范围。认为亚洲直立人具有特化的衍生性状的观点在本文不能得到支持。

For the debate on the relationship between African and Asian Homo erectus, the present paper examined the main cranial features that are used to support the separation of Asian and African Homo erectus and put the African Homo erectus into Homo ergaster. The African specimens observed in present study include the earliest fossils of Homo erectus skulls ever found in East Africa (KNM-ER 3733、KNM-ER 3883 and KNM-WT 15000). The supporters for the separation of Asian and African Homo erectus use these fossils as the main evidence to demonstrate their opinions. In present study, 18 cranial features were compared between African and Chinese Homo erectus. Our results show that some morphological features suggested to be uniquely derived character state for East Asian Homo erectus also occur in the East African Homo erectus. The differences between African and Chinese Homo erectus for these cranial features are mainly the expression pattern and extents of development. The authors believe that according to the comparisons of the cranial features in present paper, the cranial morphologies of African and Chinese Homo erectus are very similar, and the morphological differences between them may just reflect the morphological variations of Homo erectus. The opinion that supports the existence of Asian Homo erectus autapomorphies cannot be proved in present study.