This species, discovered by Alan Walker in 1985 in West Turkana, Kenya, is known only from one major specimen, the “Black Skull,” shown below, plus a few bone fragments. Its huge eye sockets and large sagital crest are its striking features. The brain is very small (410 cc) and its teeth are very large. The massive cheek bones and muscle attachments on the skull indicate a powerful chewing adaptation characteristic of most australopithecines.
The back parts of the skull resemble the same features in A. afarensis. In most other respects it resembles A. boisei.
