Human
The human (Homo sapiens) is a species of great ape that evolved in Africa at least 300,000 years ago and now lives on every continent. Humans are distinguished by habitual bipedal walking, a large brain, complex language and culture.
The human (Homo sapiens) is a species of great ape that evolved in Africa at least 300,000 years ago and now lives on every continent. Humans are distinguished by habitual bipedal walking, a large brain, complex language and culture.
🧬 Field Guide Specimen: Open Human in the CRV Science Field Guide to log the specimen, see its place among the Mammals lineages in the Cladogram Explorer, and test your recall in the Red List conservation game.
Origins: Where Did Modern Humans Come From?
The oldest fossils attributed to our species, from Jebel Irhoud in Morocco, are about 300,000 years old. Our ancestors dispersed out of Africa and met Neanderthals and Denisovans, with whom they interbred. Most people outside Africa carry a few percent of Neanderthal DNA. See Evolution.
The Human Genome
The genome contains about 3.1 billion base pairs spread over 23 chromosome pairs. A draft was published in 2001, and in 2022 the Telomere-to-Telomere consortium reported the first gapless sequence. The brain contains around 86 billion neurons.
A Holobiont
A human body hosts trillions of microbes, which contribute to digestion, immunity and health. See Microbiology and the human microbiome.
Human at a Glance
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Scientific name | Homo sapiens |
| Kingdom | Animalia |
| Phylum | Chordata |
| Class | Mammalia |
| Order | Primates |
| Family | Hominidae |
| Field Guide group | Mammals: Eutheria (Placentals) |
| Diagnostic feature (Field Guide) | The ultimate hominid case study for bipedalism, massive encephalization, and global ecological domination. |
| Chromosome pairs | 23 |
| Oldest fossils | About 300,000 years |