Bipedalism Research Paper

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Bipedalism is the condition of being two-footed or of using two feet for standing and walking. Scientist are still trying to figure out how bipedalism emerged, but it dates back to over six million years ago. Over time as humans spread out to other habitats, their style of walking has adapted to the environment. How did humans evolve to become bipedal? Humans were introduced to bipedalism due to adaptations to their environment and behavioral patterns. Bipedalism was adapted in response to the freeing of hands. The roles in childbirth of both parents played as a key factor of the evolution of humans walking. By walking on two legs, were able to care for their families by providing “ high-energy food, which expanded the mother's ability to…show more content…
The environment such as forests and grasslands required them to adapt “Walking upright may have helped this species survive in diverse habitats near where it lived---including forests and grasslands.”(Smithsonian Institution 1). These environments were populated by trees, grass, and predators. Adapting to their environment walking on two legs made it easier for them to spot predators in places such as grasslands where walking on all fours wouldn’t benefit them because they wouldn’t be able to see over the tall grass. Humans faced other environmental factors that led to bipedalism. The pelvis and thigh bones of Homo erectus are similar to modern humans this is because “Early humans was able to walk long distances.” (Smithsonian Institution 1). The ability to walk long distances was a major advantage during the time period because “East Africa’s environments were fluctuating widely between moist and dry, and open grasslands were beginning to spread.” (Smithsonian Institution 1) This evidence supports the idea that humans adapted to bipedalism due to their environment, because as the environment shifted continuously they had to adapt in order to keep up with the habitat that best suited them. By being able to walk long distances they were able to adapt to their environment which required a change of bone structure. This change didn’t happen immediately, but the change did play a key role in
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