# Where are all the males? Ancient human fossils reveal a startling mystery

Source: [Fossils & Ruins News -- ScienceDaily](https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/11/261110042558.htm) · 2026-11-11 · Life
Page: https://themorning.science/story/where-are-all-the-males-ancient-human-fossils-reveal-a-startling-mystery-1e328afeb6e141bc
Kind: research · Impact: medium

## In 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.

## Timeline

- 2026-11-11: ScienceDaily reports findings of an all-female burial site linked to Homo naledi

## Coverage

- [Where are all the males? Ancient human fossils reveal a startling mystery](https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/11/261110042558.htm) — Fossils & Ruins News -- ScienceDaily, 2026-11-11

Tags: homo naledi, paleoanthropology, human evolution, burial practices, ancient proteins

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Brief generated by AI (claude-haiku-5-5) from the reporting listed under Coverage. Headlines belong to their publishers. The Morning Science – https://themorning.science