Ward S, Hill A
Am J Phys Anthropol. 1987 Jan;72(1):21-37. doi: 10.1002/ajpa.1330720104.
Sediments in the Tugen Hills, west of Lake Baringo, Kenya, form one of the best fossiliferous successions known in Africa spanning the period from 14 my to less than 4 my. Hominoid fossils have previously been recovered from a number of localities in the region. We describe here a new hominid mandible (KNM-TH 13150) from the site of Tabarin, in the Chemeron Formation. Isotopic determinations on a tuff below the fossiliferous horizon gives dates of 4.96 my and 5.25 my. The associated fauna is consistent with these results and independently suggests a minimum age for the specimen of 4.15 my. Although fragmentary, the preserved morphology of the Tabarin mandible is consistent with the diagnosis of the Pliocene hominid Australopithecus afarensis. It can be distinguished from all other currently recognized hominoid taxa.
肯尼亚巴林戈湖以西的图根山的沉积物形成了非洲已知的最好的含化石层序之一，跨越了从1400万年前到不到400万年前的时期。此前已从该地区的多个地点发现了类人猿化石。我们在此描述来自切梅龙组塔巴林遗址的一个新的原始人类下颌骨（KNM-TH 13150）。在含化石层位之下的凝灰岩上进行的同位素测定得出的年代为496万年前和525万年前。相关的动物群与这些结果一致，并独立表明该标本的最小年龄为415万年前。尽管不完整，但塔巴林下颌骨保存下来的形态与上新世原始人类阿法南方古猿的诊断特征相符。它可以与目前所有其他已确认的类人猿分类群区分开来。
