Ape CT scans measured and compared: Gómez-Robles et al 2025
Gómez-Robles et al wrote,
“The level of craniofacial diversity of hominids (the group that includes great apes and humans) is much higher than that of their sister group, the hylobatids (also known as gibbons or lesser apes), despite the similar timeline of diversification and a similar level of genetic differentiation between the two clades. To shed light on the evolutionary dynamics shaping these varying levels of craniofacial diversity, we used three-dimensional high-density geometric morphometric approaches and phylogenetic comparative methods. We show that neurocranial diversity exceeds that expected from neutral evolution in the great apes with respect to the gibbons, whereas facial diversity does not.”
Fig 1. A portion of figure 1 from Gómez-Robles et al 2025 showing their CT scans.
” data-medium-file=”https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/ape.skulls588.jpg?w=226″ data-large-file=”https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/ape.skulls588.jpg?w=584″ class=”size-full wp-image-95161″ src=”https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/ape.skulls588.jpg” alt=”Fig 1. A portion of figure 1 from Gómez-Robles et al 2025 showing their CT scans.” width=”584″ height=”775″ srcset=”https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/ape.skulls588.jpg?w=584&h=775 584w, https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/ape.skulls588.jpg?w=113&h=150 113w, https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/ape.skulls588.jpg?w=226&h=300 226w, https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/ape.skulls588.jpg 588w” sizes=”(max-width: 584px) 100vw, 584px” />
Fig 1. A portion of figure 1 from Gómez-Robles et al 2025 showing their CT scans. These are all adult skulls. Compare to juveniles in figure 2 where the forehead is larger and the canines and nares are smaller.
“Within this general pattern of differences and similarities between the great and lesser apes, humans emerge as the only species that consistently shows the highest
evolutionary rate across almost all craniofacial regions in both males and females, thus pointing to strong human-specific selective pressures in neurocranial and facial evolution.”
“A clear understanding of the patterns of long-term evolution across hominoids is obscured by the different levels of sexual dimorphism across the apes. While some ape species, such as gorillas and orangutans, are highly sexually dimorphic, other species, such as gibbons, chimpanzees and humans, are minimally dimorphic. These differing levels of sexual dimorphism are associated with social differences across species and mediated by hormonal factors that influence cranial development (reviewed in [33]). To understand the relationship between overall selective pressures, long-term evolution and sexual selection, we quantified sex-specific evolutionary trends in craniofacial evolution across the apes.”
Reporting in the Results section,
the authors described their methods: “High-density three-dimensional geometric morphometric configurations of landmarks, curves and surface semilandmarks were used to describe craniofacial variation across nine species of hylobatids and seven species of hominids.”
The terms, ‘juvenile’, ‘immature’, and ‘ontogeny’ do not appear in the authors’ text.
Figure 2. Skull of juvenile Hylobates (gibbon) compared to a juvenile Homo (human). Compare these to those in figure 1.
” data-medium-file=”https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/hylobates-homo.skull_.anterior588.jpg?w=300″ data-large-file=”https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/hylobates-homo.skull_.anterior588.jpg?w=584″ class=”size-full wp-image-95163″ src=”https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/hylobates-homo.skull_.anterior588.jpg” alt=”Figure 2. Skull of juvenile Hylobates (gibbon) compared to a juvenile Homo (human). Compare these to those in figure 1. ” width=”584″ height=”498″ srcset=”https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/hylobates-homo.skull_.anterior588.jpg?w=584&h=498 584w, https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/hylobates-homo.skull_.anterior588.jpg?w=150&h=128 150w, https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/hylobates-homo.skull_.anterior588.jpg?w=300&h=256 300w, https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/hylobates-homo.skull_.anterior588.jpg 588w” sizes=”(max-width: 584px) 100vw, 584px” />
Figure 2. Skull of juvenile Hylobates (gibbon) compared to a juvenile Homo (human). Compare these to those in figure 1.
One of the drivers of change in evolution
is phylogenetic miniaturization, which includes precocious sexual maturity = kids having kids accompanied by a bit of neotony (Fig 2). Overlooked by the authors, a juvenile Hylobates bears an uncanny resemblance to a juvenile Homo = human. This resemblance tends to fade away as both taxa mature (Fig 1). As juveniles (Fig 2) both have a high forehead, large incisors, small nares, and a gracile small face without a prognathus rostrum that the ‘great’ apes lack.
That’s worth noting.
Figure 2. Quote from Carol Ward, U of Missouri along with the Hylobates hypothesis.
” data-medium-file=”https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/hylobates-hypothesis-ward588.jpg?w=247″ data-large-file=”https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/hylobates-hypothesis-ward588.jpg?w=584″ class=”size-full wp-image-87978″ src=”https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/hylobates-hypothesis-ward588.jpg” alt=”Figure 2. Quote from Carol Ward, U of Missouri along with the Hylobates hypothesis.” width=”584″ height=”710″ srcset=”https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/hylobates-hypothesis-ward588.jpg?w=584&h=710 584w, https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/hylobates-hypothesis-ward588.jpg?w=123&h=150 123w, https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/hylobates-hypothesis-ward588.jpg?w=247&h=300 247w, https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/hylobates-hypothesis-ward588.jpg 588w” sizes=”(max-width: 584px) 100vw, 584px” />
Figure 3. Quote from Carol Ward, U of Missouri along with the Hylobates hypothesis.
What if humans are not ‘great’ apes?
What if humans are actually one of the ‘lesser’ apes? Earlier we looked at the lineage of humans including gibbons here and earlier in links therein supported by phylogenetic analysis in the large reptile tree (LRT, 2338 taxa).
References
Gómez-Robles A, Drennan A, Basa M and Gleeson A 2025. Accelerated evolution
increased craniofacial divergence between humans and great apes. Proc. R. Soc. B 292:
20251507. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2025.1507
Source: https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/2025/11/13/ape-ct-scans-measured-and-compared-gomez-robles-et-al-2025/
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