• Question: would the earliest humans have belly buttons, as they may not have been born and wouldn't need an umbilical cord

    Asked by anon-195227 to James, Ceri-Wyn, Anthony on 5 Jan 2019. This question was also asked by anon-195243.
    • Photo: James Cole

      James Cole answered on 5 Jan 2019:

      As far as I know, the earliest humans would certainly have had belly buttons as they would have had an umbilical cord. So, yes, they would have.

Comments

  • Photo: Gemma

    Gemma commented on :

    Humans, like most mammals, have a placenta. The belly button is the “scar” from where the umbilical cord joins to the placenta. The earliest humans were placental mammals so had belly buttons. Most mammals have belly buttons (though not as visible as ours).