Australopithecus africanus

Australopithecus africanus is an extinct australopithecine that lived in South Africa between about 3.3 and 2.1 million years ago, in the Late Pliocene and Early Pleistocene. Fossils come from Taung, Sterkfontein, Makapansgat and Gladysvale. The Taung Child, described by Raymond Dart in 1924, was the first early hominin ever found, although its closeness to humans was not widely accepted until mid-century. Brain volume was about 420 to 510 cubic centimetres, and the cheek teeth were enlarged with thick enamel. Males may have averaged 140 centimetres and 40 kilograms. It walked competently on two legs but kept upper body traits shared with tree-climbing apes. Its place among hominins is unclear.