Question

What are the differences between hominids and hominoids?

Answer 1

Hint: Apes are the closest living relatives of humans. Furthermore, because we shared common ancestors millions of years ago, apes and humans have more in common than most other animals. This explains why humans and apes share many characteristics. Continue reading to learn how humans differ from apes and whether we share any similarities.

Complete answer:
A hominid is any member of the Hominidae biological family. These are the "great apes," both extant and extinct. There are currently humans, chimps, gorillas, and orangutans. The term "hominid" has been used in a variety of contexts. In the last few decades, the classification of the great apes has been revised several times. A hominoid, also known as an ape, is a member of the superfamily Hominoidea, which includes the gibbons (lesser apes, family Hylobatidae) and hominids. A hominid is a member of the great ape family Hominidae, which includes orangutans, gorillas, chimps, and humans.

The differences between hominids and hominoids are as follows:

Hominids	Hominoids
Homo sapiens have a larger brain than hominoids.	Hominoids' brains are smaller than hominids'.
They walk on two legs.	They walk on all fours.
The evolution of the hand in Homo sapiens is more detailed.	Hominoids have less hand evolution.
Hominids are bipedal and stand upright.	Hominoids are quadrupeds with flexible forelimbs.

Note: A hominid is an intelligent human-like species that is bipedal (walks on two legs) (has a large brain and uses tools). Modern man, or Homo sapiens, is the only living species of hominid. Until the discovery of Ardi, the earliest known stage of human evolution was Australopithecus, a small-brained, fully bipedal "ape-man" who lived between 4 million and 1 million years ago.