Homo habilis, one of the earliest known human ancestors, emerged around 2.3 million years ago with a brain size significantly larger than modern chimpanzees. By around 1.8 million years ago, they became the first species known to use toothpicks for dental hygiene, alongside their advanced tool use for specific tasks like skinning animals and cutting plants.
Homo habilis, whose name means “handy man,” is widely regarded as the first species of human ancestors to demonstrate more purposeful and skilled toolmaking. Although their ancestors had been using basic stone tools for about a million years, Homo habilis advanced these techniques, crafting Oldowan tools for specific purposes like skinning animals, chopping bones to access marrow, and cutting plants. This leap in technology reflects not only their increased cognitive ability, supported by a brain size 20 to 50% larger than modern chimpanzees, but also their adaptive versatility in different environments.
By 1.8 million years ago, Homo habilis also became the first known hominins to use toothpicks, evidenced by grooves in fossilized teeth, marking an important behavioral step toward dental hygiene. Their flexible diet, improved tool use, and ability to adapt to diverse challenges positioned them as a key milestone in the evolution of early humans.
The wide use of toothpicks in every culture goes back to the beginning of the genus Homo all the way to modern times. The earliest Homo habilis evidence goes back 1.84 mya.
Homo habilis teeth before 1.84 mya do not show toothpick grooves suggesting the skills evolved before 1.84 mya and after 2.3 mya.
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