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How did the teeth of Orrorin tugenensis differ from those of modern humans?
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human evolution
An artist's depiction of five species of the human lineage.
While Orrorin tugenensis is considered a hominin due to features of its femur that suggest bipedalism, its dental anatomy remains primitive and distinct from that of modern humans.1
Specifically, Orrorin tugenensis possesses canine and premolar teeth that are described as distinctively apelike. In contrast, modern humans have canine teeth that are relatively small, nonprojecting, and incisorlike. Furthermore, while O. tugenensis shares the trait of thick molar enamel with later hominins, its overall dental morphology lacks the reduction in size and the specialized characteristics that define the modern human condition.12