The beauty of it is that we keep finding new specimens, and they keep challenging whatever the current received wisdom is on human evolution.
Toumai [which means "hope of life"] was classified as a member of the newly dubbed species Sahelanthropus tchadensis and is thought to be between 6 million and 7 million years old.
That means it could be as much as 1 million years older than previously found hominid fossils, and at least 3 million years older than the next-oldest hominid skulls.
Brunet concluded Toumai walked upright because the hole for the spinal cord at the skull's base is shaped like those of more recent bipedal prehumans.
The skull appears to be the size of that of a modern common chimpanzee with a similar cranial capacity and smallish teeth. But facial details, such as a very thick bony eyebrow ridge, are like those of male hominids.
The specimen's age falls near a critical point when the human lineage split from apes. Relying on genetic evidence, scientists have assumed the split occurred 5 million to 7 million years ago; Toumai's appearance may push back the timeline.
The location where the fossil was discovered is also significant, as at the time Toumai lived it was forested, not grassland.
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