How can paleoanthropologists determine whether a specimen is a new species of hominin or whether it is an individual of an already known hominin species?

Question

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Paleoanthropologists study the extent of variation within known species to understand the range of differences that can occur within a species (A). They also evaluate homoplasic traits, which are traits that appear similar due to convergent evolution, to differentiate between new species and variations of known species (B). Analogous traits (C) are not typically used for this purpose as they do not indicate evolutionary relationships.

How Can Paleoanthropologists Determine Whether a Specimen Is a New