Australopithecus sediba
[ aw-strey-loh-pith-i-kuhs suh-dee-buh, -puh-thee-kuhs, aw-struh-loh- ]
/ ɔˌstreɪ loʊˈpɪθ ɪ kəs səˈdi bə, -pəˈθi kəs, ˌɔ strə loʊ- /
noun
an extinct species of early hominin whose fossil remains were discovered in South Africa in 2008, dated at about 1.98 million years of age: remarkably complete skeletons reveal evidence suggesting a possible close ancestral link to the genus Homo.
a fossil belonging to this species.
Origin of Australopithecus sediba
Australopithecus + Sotho sediba “natural well, spring”; coined by American-born South African paleoanthropologist Lee Berger (born 1965)
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019