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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jan 14, 2026

Reverse Dissection and DiceCT Reveal Otherwise Hidden Data in the Evolution of the Primate Face
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Accelerated evolution increased craniofacial divergence between humans and great apes.

Aida Gómez-Robles1, Amy Drennan1, Maricci Basa2

  • 1Department of Anthropology, University College London, London, UK.

Proceedings. Biological Sciences
|October 21, 2025
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Great apes exhibit higher craniofacial diversity than gibbons due to unique evolutionary pressures on their neurocrania. Humans show the highest evolutionary rates, indicating distinct selective pressures on their craniofacial development.

Keywords:
craniumgeometric morphometricsgibbonsgreat apeshominidshominoidshylobatidsphylogeny

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Area of Science:

  • Evolutionary biology
  • Paleoanthropology
  • Comparative anatomy

Background:

  • Hominids (great apes and humans) display greater craniofacial diversity than hylobatids (lesser apes).
  • This difference exists despite similar diversification timelines and genetic divergence between these groups.
  • Understanding the evolutionary forces driving this disparity is crucial for evolutionary studies.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the evolutionary dynamics behind the differing craniofacial diversity in hominids versus hylobatids.
  • To determine if neurocranial and facial diversity evolve under similar or different selective pressures.
  • To identify species-specific evolutionary patterns within these groups, particularly in humans.

Main Methods:

  • Employed three-dimensional high-density geometric morphometrics to analyze craniofacial variation.
  • Utilized phylogenetic comparative methods to assess evolutionary rates and patterns.
  • Compared diversity levels between great apes, lesser apes, and humans.

Main Results:

  • Neurocranial diversity in great apes surpasses neutral evolution expectations when compared to gibbons.
  • Facial diversity, however, shows similar evolutionary dynamics across both great apes and gibbons.
  • Humans exhibit the highest evolutionary rates across most craniofacial regions, for both sexes.

Conclusions:

  • Great ape neurocranial diversity is influenced by genus-specific selective pressures (neurocognitive, social, ecological), unlike gibbons where it's constrained by stabilizing selection and gene flow.
  • Facial evolution follows similar patterns in both great apes and gibbons.
  • Humans possess unique craniofacial evolutionary trajectories, driven by potent human-specific selective pressures affecting both neurocranial and facial structures.