How tall were male Australopithecus afarensis individuals?

Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

Side view illustration of Australopithecus afarensis, an early human ancestor, shown walking upright with a hairy body and ape-like facial features. A scale beside the figure marks 12 inches and 40 centimeters. — Australopithecus Artist's rendering of *Australopithecus afarensis*, which lived from 3.8 to 2.9 million years ago.

Male Australopithecus afarensis individuals stood approximately 151 cm (roughly 5 feet) tall.1

This species exhibited marked sexual dimorphism, with males being significantly larger than females, who stood about 105–109 cm (approximately 3 feet 5 inches to 3 feet 7 inches) tall.12