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Prehistoric Life

How tall was Australopithecus afarensis?

An adult Australopithecus afarensis stood about 1.1 m (3 ft 7 in) tall.

What is measured: adult female, estimated standing height

Australopithecus afarensis (1.1 m) drawn to scale beside a bowling pin (38.1 cm) and an adult person (1.7 m)
Drawn to scale, from left to right: Bowling pin (38.1 cm), Australopithecus afarensis (1.1 m) and Adult person (1.7 m).

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How big is that, really?

  • About 65% of the height of an adult person
  • About 55% of the height of a doorway
  • About 2.9× as tall as a bowling pin
  • About 7.5× as tall as a smartphone
  • About 18% of the length of a 20-foot shipping container

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Facts about Australopithecus afarensis

The famous Australopithecus afarensis fossil nicknamed Lucy was about 40% complete and lived roughly 3.2 million years ago.

Source: Smithsonian Human Origins — Australopithecus afarensis; Cleveland Museum of Natural History — Lucy

Prehistoric Life

NameSizeCompared with Australopithecus afarensis
Anomalocaris canadensis1 m (3 ft 3 in)0.91×
Diplocaulus magnicornis1 m (3 ft 3 in)0.91×
Eoraptor lunensis1 m (3 ft 3 in)0.91×
Australopithecus afarensis1.1 m (3 ft 7 in)this page
Smilodon1.2 m (3 ft 11 in)1.1×
Sinosauropteryx prima1.2 m (3 ft 11 in)1.1×
Heterodontosaurus tucki1.2 m (3 ft 11 in)1.1×
Smilodon fatalis1.2 m (3 ft 11 in)1.1×
Thylacosmilus atrox1.2 m (3 ft 11 in)1.1×
Compsognathus longipes1.25 m (4 ft 1 in)1.1×

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