A couple of two million-year-old skeletons found in South Africa have been classified as a new species and named Australopithecus sediba. This discovery may be a "transitional species" between australopithecines and humans.

Growing to just over 4 feet (1.2 meters) tall, A. sediba has a number of key traits that some would say mark it as an early human, like Homo habilis, which many consider the first human species.

A. sediba, for example, had long legs and certain humanlike characteristics in its pelvis, which would have made it the first human ancestor to walk—perhaps even run—in an energy-efficient manner, the study says.

However, there are also many apelike traits in the new species. Link

(image credit: Brett Eloff)