Fossils Belong to New Great Ape

Nine fossilized teeth found in Ethiopia are from a previously unknown species of great ape, according to Nature journal reports. The 10 million year old fossils belong to an animal that has been named Coroapithecus abyssinicus by the Ethiopian-Japanese team. This new species could be a direct ancestor of living African great apes, according to the researchers. The finds from the Afar rift, in eastern Ethiopia, raise questions on current theories of human evolution.