Early Human Evolution: Climate Change and Human Evoluti

The evolutionary surge that led to Homo habilis began towards the end of the Pliocene Epoch around 2.5 million years ago when climates were becoming cooler. The evolution of Homo erectus and later species of humans occurred during the following Pleistocene Epoch (1,810,000-10,000 years ago). The Pleistocene was generally a time of more extreme world cooling and recurrent glaciations (ice ages). During the coldest periods, long-lasting ice sheets spread out from the poles and high mountains. Between the 4 or more major glaciations of the Pleistocene, there were interglacial warming periods with temperatures similar to now. Both the glacials and the interglacials lasted tens of thousands of years. Very likely, we are now in an interglacial that began around 10,000 years ago.

Changing Climate Patterns of the Pleistocene Epoch
Epoch	Climate	Years Ago * (approximate)	Regional Name
Epoch	Climate	Years Ago * (approximate)	European Alps	North America
Holocene	interglacial	10,000 to the present
Pleistocene	glacial	110,000 to 12-10,000	Würm	Wisconsin
	interglacial	130-125,000 to 110,000	Riss-Würm	Sangamon
	glacial	200,000 to 130-125,000	Riss	Illinoian
	interglacial	380-300,000 to 200,000	Mindel-Riss	Yarmouth
	glacial	455-410,000 to 380-300,000	Mindel	Kansan
	interglacial	620,000 to 455-410,000	Günz-Mindel	Aftonian
	glacial	680,000 to 620,000	Günz	Nebraskan
	Evidence of glacial and interglacial episodes during the early Pleistocene is less clear. However, it is believed that there were 2 or more glacials with intervening interglacials. Between the Pleistocene and the preceding Pliocene Epoch was a long period of gradual cooling that began 2.6-2.5 million years ago.
Pliocene	5.3-1.81 million years ago--mostly warmer conditions than the Pleistocene

*   These time ranges are approximations and do not reflect the fact that temperature
     changes between glacials and interglacials usually occurred over thousands of years.
     (principal source: P. Gibbard and T. Van Kolfschoten (2004) "The Pleistocene and
     Holocene Epochs", ch. 22, in F. M. Gradstein et.al., A Geologic Time Scale (2004),
     Cambridge University Press)

The continents of the northern hemisphere were more affected by glaciations than the southern ones, which generally remained mostly tropical and subtropical, though more humid during ice ages. The coldest regions of the world became arctic deserts. However, the great deserts of North Africa and Western North America today were mostly vast grasslands with large permanent lakes and abundant game animals during the Pleistocene ice ages. Sea levels were 300-400 feet (ca. 90-120 m.) lower than today during the coldest periods as a result of a substantial volume of the world's water being locked on the continents in 1-2 mile (ca. 1.5-3 km.) thick glacial sheets covering thousands of square miles. As a consequence, vast areas that are today shallow sea and ocean bottoms were exposed for thousands of years. Twice during the last ice age, lowered sea levels resulted in Siberia being connected to Alaska by a 1200-1300 mile (1900-2100 km.) wide corridor. Asian hunters used this route to migrate into the western hemisphere to become the first Native Americans.

Extent of major glaciers at the height of the last ice age (20,000 b.p.)
		Ice age conditions in the northern hemisphere during the Pleistocene (persistent glaciers with tundra and cold forests at lower elevations farther south)

Human evolution was very likely affected strongly by the dramatic climatic swings of the Pleistocene. These changes no doubt presented powerful new natural selection pressures. Many animal species were driven to extinction by the advancing and retreating ice ages. Humanity survived primarily by becoming more intelligent and adaptable. This allowed us to develop new cultural technology to deal with cold environments, especially during the last 1/4 million years. One of the greatest problems in the cold regions would have been the relative scarcity of plant foods that humans could eat during the winters. In response to this, our ancestors became more proficient at hunting animals, especially large ones that provided more calories. This required inventing more sophisticated hunting skills as well as better weapons and butchering tools. These changes in subsistence pattern were essential for our survival.

During ice ages, those species that were not driven to extinction by the cold commonly evolved larger, more massive bodies as a means of producing and retaining more heat. This was especially true of mammals in the northern hemisphere. This is to be expected, given the predictions of Bergmann's rule. Humans evolved larger bodies during the Pleistocene as well.

NOTE: Global cooling events that result in ice ages have occurred a number of times during the earth's history. Some of these cold periods have lasted for 10's of millions of years. The ice ages of the Pleistocene were just the recent part of a longer progressively cooling trend that began about 60 million years ago. By 35-30 million years ago, it was finally cold enough for the most recent polar ice sheets to form.

(These time ranges are approximations and do not reflect the fact that temperature changes between major cold
and warm phases of the earth's history usually occurred over long periods of time and that the cold periods varied
in temperature and were not consistently cool.}