Fornai et al. present a geometric morphometric study of the sacrum in two alleged Australopithecus africanus specimens from Sterkfontein Member 4, South Africa. By comparing the two fossil hominins to a diverse sample of modern humans and great apes, the authors conclude that the observed morphological differences are unlikely to occur within a single species, supporting earlier claims of taxonomic heterogeneity within the Australopithecus africanus hypodigm.
- Cinzia Fornai
- Viktoria A. Krenn
- Martin Haeusler