Here is my second posting based on Whats The Problem With Nudity? This posting deals with the human louse and how it can help determine when we first became furless. Not all time calculations correspond exactly with the Scientific American article, but they are generally in the same ballpark.
The prevailing opinion among experts is that humans and chimps descend from a same line, from a same ancestor. The humans and chimps diverged from that line, and each other, about six million years ago. Since chimps are still furry today, the earliest human ancestors must have been furry as well.
Which species of human was the first to become naked? Weve only been around for about a quarter of a million years. Were we the first to be naked? Or does it go back further?
Skin isnt preserved in fossils. The clues have to be found somewhere else. Some decided to try looking at lice. The lice in our heads used to be found all over our bodies. As hair disappeared from most of our body, the lice stayed in our heads, the only habitat still welcoming to them. DNA testing shows human lice and chimpanzee lice diverged at generally the same time humans and chimps diverged.
But humans are somewhat unique in that they have three types of lice. Besides our head lice, we have pubic lice and clothes lice.
The pubic or crab louse is different in size and shape from the head louse. It is adapted to holding on to larger hairs which are spaced farther apart. DNA tests show its closest living relative is the gorilla louse. How would humans have acquired the gorilla louse? For now, we cant be sure. All we know is lice are usually transmitted through physical contact.
In any case, the gorilla lice could not survive on humans until humans could provide a suitable habitat. So, first we lost the body hair, and then we gained gorilla-like pubic hair. Of course, the gorilla louse on humans has since developed into what we call the human pubic louse.
According to DNA tests, the move of this louse from gorillas to humans occurred roughly three million years ago. This is long before modern humans, who appeared a quarter of a million years ago. In fact, this would indicate that nakedness goes all the way back to Australopithecus. Every descendant since then inherited naked skin.
The clothing louse, sometimes called the body louse, is a direct descendant of the head louse, and, like the pubic louse, could only evolve when a suitable habitat existed. In other words, the clothing louse came about when clothes were invented and worn. The divergence occurred about 650 thousand years ago. That would be when humans first got dressed. This means ancestral humans lived completely naked for close to two million years.
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of SocialCO Media, LLC or True NudistsThe prevailing opinion among experts is that humans and chimps descend from a same line, from a same ancestor. The humans and chimps diverged from that line, and each other, about six million years ago. Since chimps are still furry today, the earliest human ancestors must have been furry as well.
Which species of human was the first to become naked? Weve only been around for about a quarter of a million years. Were we the first to be naked? Or does it go back further?
Skin isnt preserved in fossils. The clues have to be found somewhere else. Some decided to try looking at lice. The lice in our heads used to be found all over our bodies. As hair disappeared from most of our body, the lice stayed in our heads, the only habitat still welcoming to them. DNA testing shows human lice and chimpanzee lice diverged at generally the same time humans and chimps diverged.
But humans are somewhat unique in that they have three types of lice. Besides our head lice, we have pubic lice and clothes lice.
The pubic or crab louse is different in size and shape from the head louse. It is adapted to holding on to larger hairs which are spaced farther apart. DNA tests show its closest living relative is the gorilla louse. How would humans have acquired the gorilla louse? For now, we cant be sure. All we know is lice are usually transmitted through physical contact.
In any case, the gorilla lice could not survive on humans until humans could provide a suitable habitat. So, first we lost the body hair, and then we gained gorilla-like pubic hair. Of course, the gorilla louse on humans has since developed into what we call the human pubic louse.
According to DNA tests, the move of this louse from gorillas to humans occurred roughly three million years ago. This is long before modern humans, who appeared a quarter of a million years ago. In fact, this would indicate that nakedness goes all the way back to Australopithecus. Every descendant since then inherited naked skin.
The clothing louse, sometimes called the body louse, is a direct descendant of the head louse, and, like the pubic louse, could only evolve when a suitable habitat existed. In other words, the clothing louse came about when clothes were invented and worn. The divergence occurred about 650 thousand years ago. That would be when humans first got dressed. This means ancestral humans lived completely naked for close to two million years.
