"Hobbit" Wrists Help Support New Species Theory

Some readers may remember way back in Oct of 2005 I blogged about the discovery of a 'hobbit'-like skeleton found in a cave in Indonesia. (Original story here: Bone of Hobbit-like species uncovered) From early on scientists have debated whether or not this was the skeleton of a new species, or simply a pygmy with a brain defect. Well, it seems that recent study on the wrist bones of the skeleton lend support to the theory that this is a distinct species and not just a diseased early human. Here's the story from BBC News:

'Hobbit' wrists 'were primitive'

Careful study of the "Hobbit" fossil's wrist bones supports the idea that the creature was a distinct species and not a diseased modern human, it is claimed.
Matthew Tocheri and colleagues tell Science magazine that the bones look nothing like those of Homo sapiens; they look ape-like.

The announcement in 2004 detailing the discovery of Homo floresiensis caused a sensation.

Some researchers, though, have doubted the interpretation of the find.

These individuals - including the Indonesian palaeoanthropologist Teuku Jacob - have argued that the remains are probably those of a pygmy with the brain defect known as microcephaly.

But the new analysis by Tocheri, from the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC, US, and co-authors will add further weight to the original assessment.

Their study shows that the wrist bones of the Hobbit are primitive and shaped differently from the bones of both modern humans and even their near-evolutionary cousins, the now extinct Neanderthals (Homo neanderthalensis).

Link to the full story.