Taung and beyond: The mining history, geology and taphonomy of Australopithecus in South Africa

Rieneke Weij; Stephanie E. Baker; Tara R. Edwards; Job Kibii; Georgina Luti; Robyn Pickering

doi:10.17159/sajs.2025/18509

Authors

Rieneke Weij 1.Human Evolution Research Institute, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa; 2.Department of Geological Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8391-2114
Stephanie E. Baker Palaeo-Research Institute, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7140-928X
Tara R. Edwards 1.Human Evolution Research Institute, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa; 2.Department of Geological Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7652-4834
Job Kibii National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi, Kenya https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4113-0592
Georgina Luti 1.Human Evolution Research Institute, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa; 2.Department of Geological Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3026-806X
Robyn Pickering 1.Human Evolution Research Institute, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa; 2.Department of Geological Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2663-7574

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.17159/sajs.2025/18509

Keywords:

Australopithecus africanus, geological history, taphonomy, cave sediment, speleothems

Abstract

South Africa is host to the single richest early hominin fossil record worldwide, including many examples of the endemic species Australopithecus africanus fossils. This species was first described by Raymond Dart in 1925 from the deposits near the town of Taung. Later, many more fossils, of different species and genera, were found in the caves of the Sterkfontein and Makapan Valleys. To understand this rich and diverse fossil record, we must understand how the landscape formed (cave formation processes) and changed (mining), when this happened (geochronology), and how the fossils were accumulated and modified (taphonomy). Here we provide a review of these themes to mark the centenary of the Taung Child discovery. We mark this moment in our field by critically reflecting on the role of extractive practices, especially centred around past mining of the Caves and the exclusion of many members of research teams. The South African Fossil Hominid sites provide a unique opportunity to expand our understanding of the intersection between human evolution and changing environmental conditions, as the karstic landscape and remnant cave systems preserve both fossils and sedimentary archives of past environmental change. We offer a perspective on future research areas: more standardised excavation practices and techniques to raise the quality of data collected from the caves and new techniques to date and extract palaeoclimate data from cave deposits themselves, to provide novel insights into the world of the early australopiths.

Significance:

This review introduces the reader to the important fossil remains and palaeoclimate archives preserved within South Africa, highlighting the key species Australopithecus africanus and marking the centenary of its first description from the site of Taung. We review the geological and exploration history of the South African hominin fossil sites and discuss how they are intrinsically linked. We explore the impact of past extractive practices on the fossil and palaeoclimatic archives for past, current and future research. We go on to emphasise members of research teams who have been crucial to the discovery and recovery of fossils but have often been excluded and remained unnamed.