Brennen Hydzik About 4.4 millions years ago, a different type of primate emerged.
Paleontologists classify the first bipedal primates as hominids.
These first hominids had not yet developed the large brain, teeth structure, and skeletal features we identify as Homo. Their weight is estimated at 60-70 lbs. Both types are characterized by an ape-like cranium with a brain capacity of about 500 cc, which is about the size of a gorilla and about one third that of a human. This dry climate supported few trees and other dense shrubbery leading to many wide-open environments. Like Australopithecus robustus, who lived at the same time many thousands of miles away, boisei lived on a diet of hard, tough-skinned fruits and plants, the only kind that could survive in this harsh, dry climate.