Ardipithecus ramidus

Ardipithecus ramidus is an early hominin from the Afar region of Ethiopia, about 4.4 million years ago in the Early Pliocene, and the type species of its genus. It had adaptations both for walking on two legs and for life in the trees, including a divergent big toe, though it was less efficient at walking than Australopithecus and a poorer climber than living apes. Its discovery reshaped ideas about the last common ancestor of chimpanzees and humans, showing that ancestor was unlike any living ape. Its canines were reduced in both sexes, suggesting males were less aggressive than male chimpanzees. An older relative, Ardipithecus kadabba, was discovered later.