Persistence Hunting
(PBS Eons)
- humans started walking & running upright, developed longer legs
- humans strated loosing the fur, so that they can cool themselves faster during hunting
This helped humans to engage in Persistence Hunting. i.e. Chasing a prey to long distances until the prey falls of exhaustion. Humans could have run 5 hrs straight without needing water, and kept themselves cool but other animals beacause of their fur and less sweating get too hot.
Austrelopithecus had hair
So, extensive fur loss occured in genus Homo.
Apocrine glands: produce oil sweat & pheromones Eccrine glands: produce watery sweat
We have 2-5 Million eccrine gland; 10x more than chimpanzees. We have same number of hair follicle as the chimpanzees. Instead of thick hair we are covered in tiny hair that don't affect cooling.
So, bipedal walking and loss of hair are related. It made presistence hunting easier, which meant evolutionary benefit.
