The Evolution of Bipedalism

Various types of evidence have now shown that bipedalism developed very early on in human evolutionary history.

Bipedal walking is unstable. Structural changes are required to stabilise the upright torso. These are all found in early hominids.

• What do these differences in pelvic morphology mean in functional terms?

Most now accept that Australopithecus afarensis was bipedal, though maybe not exclusively so. See [Boyd & Silk 1997] , pp 347-353.

• But what were the selection pressures leading our ancestors to adopt bipedalism as their principal mode of locomotion?