Scientists believe Australopithecus first appeared in Africa about 3.85 million years ago.

科学家们认为，南方古猿大约在385万年前首次出现在非洲。

He placed its age at two million years and dubbed it Australopithecus africanus, or southern ape man of Africa.

他推断它的生存时间距今有200万年左右，井为南方古猿非洲种，或者说“非洲南方猿”。

Even his chosen name, Australopithecus, showed a lack of scholarly application, combining as it did Greek and Latin roots.

连他为化石取的名字，南方古猿——希腊语和拉丁语词根组合在一起，也显示出他的学术能力的欠缺。

Or from more ancient Homo habilis … or even from Australopithecus?

或者来自更古老的能… … 甚至来自南方古猿？

Let's start off with one of the most famous human-like groups: the Australopithecus.

让我们从最著名的类群体之一：南方古猿开始。

So this here is— this is one side of the pelvis of Lucy, the famous Australopithecus from Ethiopia.

RM：所以这是——这是来自埃塞俄的著名南方古猿露西 (Lucy) 骨盆的一侧。

Mrs Ples was originally blasted from Member 4, the source of almost every Australopithecus fossil from Sterkfontein.

Mrs Ples 最初是从 Member 4 炸毁的，它是 Sterkfontein 几乎所有南方古猿化石的来源。

Lucy belonging to the extinct species Australopithecus afarensis was discovered in northern Ethiopia in 1974, with about 40 % of her skeletal bones extant.

露西属于已灭绝的南方古猿物种，1974年在埃塞俄部被发现，目前仍然存有她大约40%的骨骼。

Fitch said it is possible the simplified development happened in a human ancestor called Australopithecus, which combined ape-like and human-like elements.

费奇说，这种简化的进化可能发生在类祖先南方古猿身上，它结合了类猿和类的元素。

In fact, they’re similar to the skeletons of one of our earlier ancestors, Australopithecus afarensis, which dates back more than 3 million years.

事实上， 它们与我们更早的祖先之一南方古猿阿法种 (Australopithecus afarensis) 的骨骼相似， 后者的历史可追溯到 300 万年前。

There being, until now, no evidence of Australopithecus in southern Africa at this time, researchers have assumed Homo evolved in east Africa as well.

直到现在， 没有证据表此时南部非洲存在南方古猿，研究员假设属也在东非进化。

Certain species, like Australopithecus afarensis, lived in eastern Africa around 3 to 4 million years ago, walked upright on two legs, and had ape-like faces.

某些物种，如南方古猿阿法种， 生活在大约 3 到 4 百万年前的东非，用两条腿直立行走， 长着类猿的脸。

That brings into question whether Australopithecus emerged in east Africa at all, and hints that the genus may be even older than previously thought.

这让质疑南方古猿是否完全出现在东非，并暗示该属可能之前认为的还要古老。

In a glass case at the vault's centre, resting on blue velvet, is Little Foot, the near-complete remains of a member of the species Australopithecus prometheus.

在拱顶中央的一个玻璃柜中，搁在蓝色天鹅绒上的是小脚，这是普罗米修斯南方古猿物种的一员近乎完整的遗骸。

She (if " she" she be) is now classified as the first discovered adult specimen of Australopithecus, the direct ancestors of Homo, the genus of modern humans.

她（如果是“她” 的话）现在被归类为第一个发现的南方古猿成年标本，南方古猿是现代属的直系祖先。

Farther north, in Pretoria, the Ditsong National Museum of Natural History hosts the skull of Mrs Ples, a representative of Australopithecus africanus, cousin to prometheus, and one of the most famous hominin fossils yet found.

再往，在勒陀利，Ditsong 国家自然历史博物馆收藏着普莱斯夫的头骨， 普莱斯夫是非洲南方古猿的代表， 普罗米修斯的表亲， 也是迄今发现的最著名的古类化石之一。

But anyway, when Berger went back to the fossil site to hunt for the rest of his skeleton, he discovered another, and another, and another — six skeletons in all, belonging to that species he named Australopithecus Sediba.

但无论如何，当伯格回到化石遗址寻找剩下的骨骼时，他又发现了另外一具，另外一具，还有另外一具——总共六具骨骼，属于他命名为南方古猿源泉种的那个物种。

It’s hard to eliminate Australopithecus as a possibility without a more complete skeleton, but the shape of the newly-found jaw and teeth showed some similarity to the teeth of early Homo erectus -- more so than Homo habilis.

如果没有更完整的骨骼， 很难排除南方古猿的可能性，但新发现的颌骨和牙齿的形状与早期直立的牙齿有一些相似之处——能更相似。