FOXSYLVANIA

– – The History Channel aired a most intriguing presentation on the evening of May 25th called, The Link. It concerned possibly the oldest and most complete human ancestor,  a 47 million year old fossil primate revealing an over 95% complete skeleton and even a soft body outline!

Discovered in Germany in the 1980’s, locked up for 25 years, and then secretly but intensely studied by a team for two years before revelation, this is the fossil of a small female arboreal primate less than a year old who lived in Germany in the trees of what was then an ancient rain forest.  Named “Ida” after the daughter of Dr. Hurum who acquired the fossil, the fossil may be that of a transitional species, a “lemur-monkey” which captures a crucial stage in evolution, incorporating features from both the human and non-human evolutionary line.- – The fossil is visually stunning and conceptually mind-boggling!–This puppy could be big!

If this fossil is a fraud as some are already saying, it’s an extremely good one.  The fossil incorporates a deformed right wrist which was likely broken and badly-healed. – -Heck, the remnants of Ida’s last meal are even represented in the stomach area!  The fossil also shows a shape adaptation in the Talus bone of the foot towards assumption of an upright posture.

If a true transitional fossil or “missing link,” this discovery will likely dominate textbooks for 100 years; this could be an awesome find!   As also expressed on the show, for those uncomfortable with the notion of evolution, “Ida’s existence will be a problem for many.”