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Lambda Alpha Journal >
Lambda Alpha Journal, v.28, 1998 >
Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item:
http://hdl.handle.net/10057/1865
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| Title: | The mysterious phylogeny of gigantopithecus |
| Authors: | Nail, Kimberly |
| Keywords: | Phylogeny
Gigantopithecus |
| Issue Date: | 1998 |
| Publisher: | Wichita State University. Dept. of Anthropology |
| Citation: | Nail, Kimberly. (1998). The mysterious phylogeny of gigantopithecus. -- Lambda Alpha Journal, v.28, p.28-36. |
| Series/Report no.: | LAJ
v.28 |
| Abstract: | Perhaps the most questionable attribute given to Gigantopithecus is its taxonomic and
phylogenetic placement in the superfamily Hominoidea. In 1935 von Koenigswald made the
first discovery ofa lower molar at an apothecary in Hong Kong. In a mess of "dragon teeth"
von Koenigswald saw a tooth that looked remarkably primate-like and purchased it; this tooth
would later be one of four looked at by a skeptical friend, Franz Weidenreich. It was this
tooth that von Koenigswald originally used to name the species Gigantopithecus blacki.
Researchers have only four mandibles and thousands of teeth which they use to reconstruct
not only the existence of this primate, but its size and phylogeny as well.
Many objections have been raised to the past phylogenetic relationship proposed by
Weidenreich, Woo, and von Koenigswald that Gigantopithecus was a forerunner to the
hominid line. Some suggest that researchers might be jumping the gun on the size attributed
to Gigantopithecus (estimated between 10 and 12 feet tall); this size has perpetuated the idea
that somehow Gigantopithecus is still roaming the Himalayas today as Bigfoot. Many
researchers have shunned the Bigfoot theory and focused on the causes of the animals
extinction. It is my intention to explain the theories of the past and why many researchers
currently disagree with them. It will be necessary to explain how the researchers conducted
their experiments and came to their conclusions as well. |
| URI: | http://hdl.handle.net/10057/1865 |
| ISSN: | 0047-3928 |
| Appears in Collections: | Lambda Alpha Journal, v.28, 1998
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Files in This Item:
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Description |
Size | Format |
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| LAJv28_p28-36.pdf | Article | 178Kb | Adobe PDF | View/Open |
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