TY - JOUR
T1 - Evolution of the human pygmy phenotype
AU - Perry, George H.
AU - Dominy, Nathaniel J.
N1 - Funding Information:
We thank Nurul Fatanah, Zanisha Man and the Batek for their hospitality, and Luis Barreiro, Geoffrey Benjamin, John Hart, Kim Hill, Kirk Endicott, Raymond Hames, Tuck-Po Lye, Edith Mirante, Etienne Patin, Gary Schwartz, Paul Verdu and Robert Walker for helpful comments and discussions. This work was supported by a grant to N.J.D. from the Packard Foundation. G.H.P. is supported by NIH fellowship F32GM085998.
PY - 2009/4
Y1 - 2009/4
N2 - Small human body size, or the 'pygmy' phenotype, is characteristic of certain African, Southeast Asian and South American populations. The convergent evolution of this phenotype, and its strong association with tropical rainforests, have motivated adaptive hypotheses that stress the advantages of small size for coping with food limitation, warm, humid conditions and dense forest undergrowth. Most recently, a life-history model has been used to suggest that the human pygmy phenotype is a consequence of early growth cessation that evolved to facilitate early reproductive onset amid conditions of high adult mortality. As we discuss here, these adaptive scenarios are not mutually exclusive and should be evaluated in consort. Findings from this area of research are expected to inform interpretations of diversity in the hominin fossil record, including the purported small-bodied species Homo floresiensis.
AB - Small human body size, or the 'pygmy' phenotype, is characteristic of certain African, Southeast Asian and South American populations. The convergent evolution of this phenotype, and its strong association with tropical rainforests, have motivated adaptive hypotheses that stress the advantages of small size for coping with food limitation, warm, humid conditions and dense forest undergrowth. Most recently, a life-history model has been used to suggest that the human pygmy phenotype is a consequence of early growth cessation that evolved to facilitate early reproductive onset amid conditions of high adult mortality. As we discuss here, these adaptive scenarios are not mutually exclusive and should be evaluated in consort. Findings from this area of research are expected to inform interpretations of diversity in the hominin fossil record, including the purported small-bodied species Homo floresiensis.
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U2 - 10.1016/j.tree.2008.11.008
DO - 10.1016/j.tree.2008.11.008
M3 - Review article
C2 - 19246118
AN - SCOPUS:62849111129
SN - 0169-5347
VL - 24
SP - 218
EP - 225
JO - Trends in Ecology and Evolution
JF - Trends in Ecology and Evolution
IS - 4
ER -
