A family in a remote part of Turkey have a genetic anomaly that has prevented their five children from walking on two feet, the BBC reports. Instead, the children walk on all fours. Researchers believe the strange gait may provide us with clues about how our ancient ancestors developed bipedalism.
The scientists reject the idea that there is a gene for two-legged walking, but they suggest that the children’s compensation for not being able to walk upright may be an instinctual response. Our ancestors may have used this form of walking, they say, before bipedalism became all the rage.
Chimpanzees and gorillas walk on their knuckles, inhibiting their fingers’ dexterity. The Turkish siblings instead use their wrists to bear their weight, freeing their fingers for more delicate work. If our ancestors also walked this way, it would have given them an evolutionary advantage over knuckle-walkers.
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