Which one of the following evolutionary stages of man did not eat meat?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → Homo habilis
NCERT traces human evolution through a series of stages, and it notes the diet at two of them. Homo habilis, the first human-like being (hominid), had a brain of 650–800 cc, and it probably did not eat meat. The next stage, Homo erectus, probably did eat meat.
(1) Homo habilis — Probably did not eat meat. It lived about 2 million years ago in East Africa.
(2) Homo erectus — Probably ate meat. It came about 1.5 million years ago and had a larger brain, about 900 cc.
(3) Ramapithecus — An early man-like primate, not a hominid. It lived about 15 million years ago, long before the first human-like being. NCERT says nothing about its food.
(4) Neanderthal man — A later human with a brain of about 1400 cc. It lived in the Near East and Central Asia, used hides to protect the body and buried its dead.
NCERT Extract:
Origin and Evolution of Man – …
