Australopiths

Australopiths are extinct early humans and our distant relatives that lived in Africa around 4 to 2 million years ago. They were bipedal, meaning they walked upright on two legs, but also spent time in trees. Their brains were smaller than modern humans', and they had a combination of ape-like and human-like features. Australopiths are important because they represent a key stage in human evolution, showing how our ancestors adapted to their environment and gradually developed traits that would lead to later species like Homo erectus and Homo sapiens.