Question

develop a hypothesis for human or animal behavior, in which the behavior is better explained by evolutionary history (ancestry), rather than as a perfect adaptation to the environment

Answer 1

Gathering hypothesis/Hunting hypothesis:-

This hypothesis suggests that gathering rather than hunting was the main factor in the emergence of anatomically modern humans.Tools were not used for hunting initially,but instead to dig up and gather plants.It is possible that the invention of tools explains the transition from a forest habitat to savanna woodlands and grasslands.Tools made gathering food easier and more economical enabling ancestral humans to live in a sparser environment.It was not until the invention of receptacles to store food that more elaborate tools used to hunt,skin,and butcher were developed.According to the gathering hypothesis hunting had no major role in the evolution of modern humans.

One of the sources of evidence for gathering hypothesis us in the alleged"Superior spatial Memory of women".Women perform better on memory tasks than males whereas males perform better on rotation tasks.women obtain larger fitness benefits by tending to their offspring,thus they provision,because it is simpler to coordinate gathering and offspring care.Females are also found to be both quicker and accurate in gathering and identifying specific plants than their male counterparts.However the gathering hypothesis cannot account for gender based division of labor in men hunting and gathering,high parental investment of human males,male coalition psychology,why human live in environments without plant resources,human gut structure versus primate gut structure ,reciprocal alliances and why women share food.