The Turkana basin is the lower ground between the Kenyan and Ethiopian highlands. The Turkana basin is one of the best places in the world to find fossils, due in part to the large faults running to the east. In the east, the cooling lava sloped to the west, causing a 35 degree slope in that direction. Around 8 million years ago, the floor opened up. The rift is not presently active. Over the past 4 million years, various rivers and lakes have washed many fossils down the surrounding highlands and into the Turkana basin. There is very little human activity in the basin because of surrounding barren desert.
The most recent important discovery made at the site was by Mary Leakey. Prior to her discovery, there was little or no evidence of hominids before 3.4 million years. However, The fossils she discovered dated to around 4 million years. The site has always had a permanent water supply, making an excellent place for ancient life to flourish, which is suggested by the different early humans found living there.
Homo rudolfensis, a fossil dating from around 1.9 million years ago, was found at this site. Also, homo ergaster remains were found, dating from around 1.7 million years. Fossils left behind by homo habilis were also found. The fossil record of the Turkana basin shows clear evidence of the site being inhabited steadily in the past.
Though this page has been carefully researched, the author does not claim expertise on East Turkana.
Please send questions, comments, and corrections to emuseum@mnsu.edu and include the URL.
Sources:
Leakey, Meave. “The Farthest Horizon”. National Geographic, Sept. 1995
"Lake Turkana Basin" World of Science. http://www.earthsky.worldofscience.com/1996/es960501.html May1,1996.