Assessment Questions 3.2

Examples of tool use by non-human animals include sea otters using stones as anvils to open shells, seagulls dropping clams on rocks to break them open, woodpecker finches using cactus spines to probe for insects, and capuchin monkeys using rocks as hammers. The significance is to challenge the notion that tool use is a unique feature distinguishing humans from other animals, as various animal species have been observed using and even making tools.

The discovery at the Lomekwi 3 site represents the oldest evidence of hominin toolmaking, dating back to at least 3.3 million years ago. It suggests that hominins were making and using stone tools by this time. The tools found are simple, involving one stone being bashed against another, indicating early toolmaking abilities.

Paleontologists face challenges in distinguishing intentional stone-tool production from unintentional rock bashing, as the rock-on-rock hammering done by capuchin monkeys produces simple cores and flakes that resemble intentional lithic industries of early hominins. The passage highlights the analytical problem resulting from the unintentional tool-like products of capuchin monkeys, making it difficult to differentiate between intentional and unintentional actions.