Paranthropus

Hominins belonging to the species Homo erectus and Paranthropus boisei, the two most common living human species of the Pleistocene Epoch, made the tracks, the researchers said.

“If Homo erectus ate considerably more animal foods than Paranthropus boisei, that alone would guarantee rather different niches,” Sponheimer told Salon in a phone interview.

Hours before or after they passed, another member of the human family, likely the smaller brained, big-jawed Paranthropus, hurried along the same shoreline.

The artifacts may not have human origins, though—they were excavated alongside teeth from an extinct hominin branch, Paranthropus.

Two big fossil teeth found at the site belong to an extinct human cousin, known as Paranthropus.