Human Evolution

An Australian lungfish (Neoceratodus forsteri) at the Haus des Meeres in Vienna, Austria.

Australian Lungfish Has Biggest Genome Ever Sequenced

The air-breathing fish dethrones the Mexican axolotl for the title of largest known genome in the animal kingdom

A woman hugs her granddaughter. Some scientists believe child care from grandmothers influenced human evolution.

How Much Did Grandmothers Influence Human Evolution?

Scientists debate the evolutionary benefits of menopause

While fieldwork was postponed, scientists made discoveries studying fossil footprints, ancient apes, monkeys and hominins.

Ten New Things We Learned About Human Origins in 2020

Smithsonian’s archaeologist Ella Beaudoin and paleoanthropologist Briana Pobiner reveal some of the year’s best findings in human origins studies

A map of Doggerland, which once connected Britain to mainland Europe

Study Rewrites History of Ancient Land Bridge Between Britain and Europe

New research suggests that climate change, not a tsunami, doomed the now-submerged territory of Doggerland

Charles Darwin in 1857, photograph by Maull and Fox

Two Darwin Notebooks Quietly Went Missing 20 Years Ago. Were They Stolen?

Staff at Cambridge University Libraries previously assumed that the papers had simply been misplaced in the vast collections

Compared to other P. robustus males recovered from a nearby cave system called Swartkrans, DNH 155 (pictured here) was much smaller and had more female-like characteristics.

Newly Unearthed Skull Reveals How Ancient Hominids Evolved to Survive a Changing Climate

"Paranthropus robustus" evolved sturdier skulls to be able to eat new, tough vegetation

When human men mated with Neanderthal women a hundred thousand years ago, Neanderthals inherited the human Y chromosome.

How Human Y Chromosomes Replaced Those of Neanderthals in a Quiet Genetic Takeover

When the two early human species mated, their genomes changed forever

Researchers identified seven prehistoric human footprints at Alathar, a dried-up lake bed in Saudi Arabia.

Human Footprints Found in Saudi Arabia May Be 120,000 Years Old

If confirmed, the footfalls would represent the oldest evidence of Homo sapiens' presence on the Arabian Peninsula

Archaeologists discovered these fossilized fragments of grass deep inside South Africa's Border Cave.

200,000-Year-Old Bedding Found in South Africa May Be World's Oldest

New study suggests ancient humans slept on layers of grass and ash, which was used to ward off insects

The charred shoulder blade of a young adult who was cremated in northern Israel some 9,000 years ago. The bone contains the embedded point of a flint projectile.

Humans in the Near East Cremated Their Dead 9,000 Years Ago

Archaeologists found the charred bones of a young adult in the ancient Israeli village of Beisamoun

Potential human ancestor Homo heidelbergensis used this 480,000-year-old bone hammer to create flint tools.

Europe's Oldest Bone Tools Hint at Early Hominin Sophistication

480,000 years ago, Homo heidelbergensis used hammers to fashion flint tools in what is now southern England

Vervet monkeys among fallen dead leaves and grass

Monkeys’ Attraction to Burned Grasslands May Offer Clues to Human Ancestors’ Mastery of Fire

A new study finds monkeys enter charred savannahs to avoid predators, lending support to a controversial theory about what drew hominins to blazes

New research suggests a genetic mutation some humans inherited from Neanderthals may make them more sensitive to pain than their peers.

Neanderthals May Have Been More Sensitive to Pain Than Most Humans

Modern humans with this Neanderthal-inherited gene report 7 percent more pain than other people

Roughly 1.4 million years ago, Homo erectus made this hand ax out of a hippopotamus' thigh bone.

1.4-Million-Year-Old Ax Made of Hippo Bone Found in Ethiopia

Thought to have been made by Homo erectus, the implement adds range and sophistication to the bipedal hominin's toolkit

A set of 120,000-year-old shells from the Qafzeh Cave in northern Israel. Ancient humans collected these shells, which had natural perforations, and arranged them on lengths of string.

New Research Suggests Humans Invented String at Least 120,000 Years Ago

Marks found on ancient shells indicate that they were laced together to create necklaces

A gene unique to humans increased brain size in common marmosets.

Brain Gene Tops the List for Making Humans, Human

In a study involving marmosets, a primate genetically similar to humans, researchers have come closer to understanding brain evolution

A male Broad-tailed Hummingbird photographed at the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory in Gothic, Colorado, where researchers conducted field experiments on avian color vision.

Compared With Hummingbirds, People Are Rather Colorblind

Experiments reveal the tiny birds can see "non-spectral" colors that blend ultraviolet light with colors humans can see to create distinct hues we can't

This diagram shows the different kinds of animal bones used to make the 48,000-year-old tools.

Evidence of Early Bow-and-Arrow Hunting Discovered in Sri Lanka

If confirmed, the 48,000-year-old find will be the oldest known instance of bowhunting outside of Africa

Reptile vertebrae found at el-Wad Terrace Cave

15,000 Years Ago, Humans in Israel Ate Snakes and Lizards

Snacking on reptiles may have helped these prehistoric people adapt to living in more permanent settlements

Excavations at the Bacho Kiro Cave in Bulgaria uncovered ancient human bones along with stone tools, animal bones, bone tools and pendants.

Humans and Neanderthals May Have Overlapped in Europe Longer Than Previously Thought

Remains found in a Bulgarian cave are between 44,000 and 46,000 years old, making them the oldest confirmed Homo sapiens discovered in Europe

Page 6 of 19