The departure from Africa of the ancestors of homo sapiens occurred in two very different migratory dispersion processes in time and due to the ecological characteristics in which each of them occurred.
An international team of researchers, with the participation of scientists from the National Museum of Natural Sciences (MNCN-CSIC) analyzed the fossil remains of a large hominid (Homo sapiens). This belongs to the early Pleistocene and was found at the Ubeidiya site (Israel) in 2018.
Is about the oldest found to date in the Levante corridor areaand the conclusions of the study, which have been published in Scientific Reportspoint out that the morphological differences of these remains with those of other hominids from the same period support the theory that the ancestors of Homo sapiens left Africa in at least two migratory dispersal events.
“At the beginning of the Pleistocene, the Levante Mediterranean region, due to its location between Africa and Eurasia, was an important transit area for the migration of various animals. Among them the hominids, ancestors of human beings”, explained Markus Bastir, researcher at the MNCN.
Although there are several relevant sites in this area, hardly any hominin remains have been found from that time.
The vertebra of a Homo sapiens
In this studio analyzed the last hominid fossils found from this period, a vertebra at the Ubeidiya site. Thus, they focused on various aspects such as the individual’s age at death and other biological characteristics.
The results show that the vertebra belonged to a large juvenile hominid that died between 6 and 12 years of age. It had later bone formation patterns than those of modern humans, the researcher explained.
Furthermore, the researchers observed important differences with other human fossils from the early Pleistocene found at the Dmanisi site (Georgia).
These are the closest geographically to Ubeidiya, but the oldest, at 1.8 million years old. Even related to more arid climatic conditions than those of the Israel deposit.
The latter suggests, according to the researchers, that the hominids of both places would present different adaptations. This can be seen in the differences in the size of the body and the tools used.
The fact that both remains were found in a passage region between Africa and Eurasia would indicate that the migration from one continent to the other occurred in two dispersal events that were different in time and in ecological characteristics. The hominids found at the Dmanisi site moved first, and then those at Ubeidiya.