Skip to main content

Research Repository

Advanced Search

Human bipedal instability in tree canopy environments is reduced by "light touch" fingertip support

Johannsen, L.; Coward, S. R.L.; Martin, G. R.; Wing, A. M.; Casteren, A. Van; Sellers, W. I.; Ennos, A. R.; Crompton, R. H.; Thorpe, S. K.S.

Authors

L. Johannsen

S. R.L. Coward

G. R. Martin

A. M. Wing

A. Van Casteren

W. I. Sellers

A. R. Ennos

R. H. Crompton

S. K.S. Thorpe



Abstract

© 2017 The Author(s). Whether tree canopy habitats played a sustained role in the ecology of ancestral bipedal hominins is unresolved. Some argue that arboreal bipedalism was prohibitively risky for hominins whose increasingly modern anatomy prevented them from gripping branches with their feet. Balancing on two legs is indeed challenging for humans under optimal conditions let alone in forest canopy, which is physically and visually highly dynamic. Here we quantify the impact of forest canopy characteristics on postural stability in humans. Viewing a movie of swaying branches while standing on a branch-like bouncy springboard destabilised the participants as much as wearing a blindfold. However "light touch", a sensorimotor strategy based on light fingertip support, significantly enhanced their balance and lowered their thigh muscle activity by up to 30%. This demonstrates how a light touch strategy could have been central to our ancestor's ability to avoid falls and reduce the mechanical and metabolic cost of arboreal feeding and movement. Our results may also indicate that some adaptations in the hand that facilitated continued access to forest canopy may have complemented, rather than opposed, adaptations that facilitated precise manipulation and tool use.

Citation

Johannsen, L., Coward, S. R., Martin, G. R., Wing, A. M., Casteren, A. V., Sellers, W. I., …Thorpe, S. K. (2017). Human bipedal instability in tree canopy environments is reduced by "light touch" fingertip support. Scientific reports, 7(1), Article 1135. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-017-01265-7

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date Mar 20, 2017
Online Publication Date Apr 25, 2017
Publication Date Dec 1, 2017
Deposit Date Feb 22, 2019
Publicly Available Date Mar 28, 2024
Journal Scientific Reports
Print ISSN 2045-2322
Electronic ISSN 2045-2322
Publisher Nature Publishing Group
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 7
Issue 1
Article Number 1135
DOI https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-017-01265-7
Keywords Biological anthropology; Evolutionary ecology; Experimental evolution; Human behaviour
Public URL https://hull-repository.worktribe.com/output/532975
Publisher URL https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-01265-7

Files

Article (1.7 Mb)
PDF

Copyright Statement
Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons license and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.





You might also like



Downloadable Citations