Ethiopian fossil reveals face for ancestor of famed ‘Lucy’

NEW YORK (AP) — A fossil from Ethiopia is showing scientists a face from millions of years back in our evolutionary history.

The discovery, some 3.8 million years old, is from a species that is considered an ancestor of “Lucy,” the famous Ethiopian partial skeleton.

This ancestral species is a group of creatures that preceded our own branch of the family tree. Scientists have long known the species existed, but they had only remains of jaws and teeth from above the neck. The newly found fossil reveals much of the face and skull. It was reported Wednesday in the journal Nature.

One expert says the discovery helps fill a critical gap in information on evolution.