Prehistoric man ate grass – lots of it

Prehistoric man, one type at least, seemed to be fond of eating grasses than any other food according to a new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on Tuesday.

Paranthropus boisei, also known as "Nutcracker Man", was originally believed to have eaten nuts while living in East Africa some 1.4 to 1.9 million years ago. It turned out the name assigned by researchers to that species of prehistoric man some 50 years was a misnomer.

Analyzing the 24 teeth of 22 members of this ancient pre-human species recovered from a site in Tanzania, researchers found out that the carbon left in the enamel was from grasses. That means this group of prehistoric man subsisted not on nuts but more on grasses.

This is the first discovery of a grass-based diet by prehistoric man. Only an extinct baboon is said to have consumed such a large amount of grasses.

Early research about "Nutcracker Man" was based on the shape, size and wear of the teeth. But the carbon study which was recently done changes the earlier findings. Paleontologists can now use additional techniques to debunk or support their colleagues' claims about how our ancestors lived.

After being reassured of proper handling by the researchers, the National Museum of Kenya which stored the samples, finally agreed for the study to be made.

"The sound of the drill may make a lot of paleontologists and museum staff cringe," said study author Kevin Uno in a statement, who said their research "provides new information that we can't get at any other way."

The revealing new study about prehistoric man was paid for by the University of Colorado and the National Science Foundation.