Human fossils hint at new species

The remains of Five individuals found in Southern China date to between 11,500 and 14,500 years ago.

Clear differences to modern humans are leading scientists studying the remains to believe they could be either a separate homo species or the remnants of an earlier Homo sapien that evolved distinctive features due to a prolonged period of separation form other Homo Sapiens.

Nicknamed 'The Red Deer Cave People' the remains have been in a Chinese collection for a while but have just recently been subjected to analysis.

Considering Neanderthals died out roughly 30,000yrs ago these individuals if they do represent a distinct species were around a relatively short time ago!



The skull certainly looks considerably different (even to my lay persons eyes) to a modern human skull.

their features are quite distinct from what you might call a classic modern human, says the team. Instead, the Red Deer Cave people have a mix of archaic and modern characteristics. In general, the individuals had rounded brain cases with prominent brow ridges. Their skull bones were quite thick. Their faces were quite short and flat and tucked under the brain, and they had broad noses. Their jaws jutted forward but they lacked a modern-human-like chin. Computed Tomography (X-ray) scans of their brain cavities indicates had modern-looking frontal lobes but quite archaic-looking anterior, or parietal, lobes. They also had large molar teeth.

source

reply to post by Versa


Ah very interesting; the leak in the dam caused by the hobbits, later the Denisovans finds another stream of humans. These may also be the Denisovans themselves - known previously only by a single finger bone

Another source on the same story

More cousins

And so it begins. For years, evolutionary biologists have predicted that new human species would start popping up in Asia as we begin to look closely at fossilised bones found there. A new analysis of bones from south-west China suggests there's truth to the forecast.

reply to post by Versa


The finds really are starting to mount up aren't they? And at a faster and faster pace - god bless technology!

Sorry for going off topic (with a stupid question), but i have to ask - does it never strike anyone else how totally ugly our forebears were? Whenever they recreate faces using these skulls, they always appear to have fallen out of the ugly tree, hit every branch on the way down and then had a beating with the ugly stick while laying collapsed on the ground!

I suppose it probably explains the mounting evidence for all the inter breeding.

Yeah look at that.
Very different from a human skull.


what's with the huge cheek bones.
And smaller head.
wow.

Originally posted by Hanslune
Another source on the same story

More cousins

And so it begins. For years, evolutionary biologists have predicted that new human species would start popping up in Asia as we begin to look closely at fossilised bones found there. A new analysis of bones from south-west China suggests there's truth to the forecast.

edit on 14/3/12 by Hanslune because: (no reason given)

Ty for the extra source

I expect we'll see many more finds as access to research other areas is granted... Very cool

Originally posted by Flavian
Sorry for going off topic (with a stupid question), but i have to ask - does it never strike anyone else how totally ugly our forebears were?

Whenever they recreate faces using these skulls, they always appear to have fallen out of the ugly tree, hit every branch on the way down and then had a beating with the ugly stick while laying collapsed on the ground!

Ugly to us but I expect they were most alluring to each other after all I wouldnt want sex with a orang-utang but there they are shagging away with each other.....

reply to post by grey580


can you add a neanderthal skull for comparison?

Originally posted by grey580
Yeah look at that.
Very different from a human skull.

what's with the huge cheek bones.
And smaller head.
wow.

edit on 14-3-2012 by grey580 because: (no reason given)

Neanderthal and Human (Neanderthal on RIGHT)

Originally posted by Versa
]

Ty for the extra source

I expect we'll see many more finds as access to research other areas is granted... Very cool

It will be interesting to see if these are the Denisovans or gasp! yet another unknown branch

reply to post by Versa


Very interesting.

I am going to read up on this more and see what I can find.

Good post.

Good Find.
But whats the whitish sections of the skull?
it looks like the missing portions of the skull were recreated based on symmetry.
What if the skull was deformed on one side and normal on the other side, but while recreating the missing sections using symmetrical proportions, the "deformed" portion gets mirrored on the other side. Just a doubt.

Leaving that aside, the skull looks so DARTH VADER -ish.

Originally posted by coredrill

But whats the whitish sections of the skull?
it looks like the missing portions of the skull were recreated based on symmetry.

Yes that is standard procedure in paleo skull reconstruction and yes it could lead to the problem you pointed out

Looking at modern humans in this same region of Southern China, I'd swear you could still see some hint of shared genetics from this earlier human.

Might be true the Han Chinese always thought rather poorly of the southern Chinese groups

Originally posted by coredrill

But whats the whitish sections of the skull?
it looks like the missing portions of the skull were recreated based on symmetry.
What if the skull was deformed on one side and normal on the other side, but while recreating the missing sections using symmetrical proportions, the "deformed" portion gets mirrored on the other side. Just a doubt.

the white areas are plaster and yes it is based on symmetry, it could be an issue but in this case they have found 5 individuals (not sure how many skulls are represented) therefore I would hope that these features are common to all of them making it less likely that its a deformity.

There's a slew of hominid skull types on display in Dresden DE which the DailyMail did an article on:

Meet the grandparents: Researchers use forensics to rebuild 27 faces of man's ancestors, stretching back 7 million years

Although these were far earlier than the time frame of the skull in the OP, they do illustrate just how fluid and wide-ranging human evolution has been.

this thread is awesome

very strange looking cheek bones ,small crainium weird

could be our Denesovians??

Originally posted by Blackmarketeer
Looking at modern humans in this same region of Southern China, I'd swear you could still see some hint of shared genetics from this earlier human.

When I saw it, I immediately saw the same structures they have now. Nothing more than a slight variation. There are skull variations between all current humans as well.

reply to post by sickofitall2012

Found these over here.

www.wku.edu...

Nice find. They also appear to to merged, and as stated, like that of the Neanderthals, have with modern man. Neanderthals had a ton of new info was found/released in 2011. Overall finds to account for the resemblances(facially/bone structure/etc.) of the people of the regions.