Research
Where are all the males? Ancient human fossils reveal a startling mystery
The Brief
- Scientists analyzed ancient proteins preserved in Homo naledi teeth from a South African cave.
- They found no male-specific markers among the analyzed remains.
- The study suggests an extinct human relative may have created an all-female burial site more than 240,000 years ago.
Why it matters
It shows that ancient proteins can be used to infer the sex of extinct hominins, which bears on what burial behaviour in extinct human relatives may have looked like.
Who’s affected
- paleoanthropologists
- readers interested in human evolution
- #homo naledi
- #paleoanthropology
- #human evolution
- #burial practices
- #ancient proteins
A remarkable discovery in a South African cave suggests that an extinct human relative may have created an all-female burial site more than 240,000 years ago. Scientists analyzed ancient proteins preserved in Homo naledi teeth and found no male-specific markers among at least 20…
Timeline
ScienceDaily reports findings of an all-female burial site linked to Homo naledi
Fossils & Ruins News -- ScienceDaily
Where are all the males? Ancient human fossils reveal a startling mystery