Social Sciences · Anthropology
Fossil collections from Lebanon reveal that productive Mediterranean woodlands persisted along the central Levantine coast for much of the period from about 400,000 to 100,000 years ago. The findings also suggest that ancient hominins hunted seasonally in different coastal habitats.
A study of Ecuadorian pumas provides the first genomic evidence of inbreeding in South American pumas. The findings suggest that climate history shaped older population connections, while fragmentation in the past 70 years has disrupted gene flow between some groups.
The Devil’s Arrows, Britain’s tallest surviving standing stone alignment, were probably deliberately quarried at Brimham Rocks and transported about 18 kilometres, a study finds. The conclusion is based on matching geological age patterns, regional ice-flow evidence and similarities in surface weathering.
Ancient DNA decays roughly four times faster in the Caribbean than in temperate regions, according to an analysis of more than 300 human samples from 33 archaeological sites. The researchers predict that remains much older than about 5,000 years will be difficult to study, but say much of the Caribbean’s human history remains within reach if well-preserved samples can be identified.
Researchers identified three Denisovan bone fragments and two teeth from Bianfu Cave in Southwest China. The remains, dated to about 167,000–134,000 years ago, add evidence from a region missing from the known Denisovan record.
Among wild Guinea baboons, variation in maternal caregiving style was not linked to infant growth or survival. The researchers suggest that disease and predators may have stronger effects in this population, but future work is needed to examine how infant behaviour and maternal responses interact.
Isotopes preserved in children’s teeth from a prehistoric Chinese site point to several weaning patterns and different life histories. People in more lavish burials had diets richer in high-protein C3 foods, while others mainly ate C4 foods, suggesting that diet and childhood treatment varied with emerging social differences.
