Science Daily - New Study Suggests Neanderthal May Have Been Wiped Out By Volcanic Eruptions

[hatrack]

ScienceDaily (Oct. 7, 2010) — New research suggests that climate change following massive volcanic eruptions drove Neanderthals to extinction and cleared the way for modern humans to thrive in Europe and Asia. The research, led by Liubov Vitaliena Golovanova and Vladimir Borisovich Doronichev of the ANO Laboratory of Prehistory in St. Petersburg, Russia, is reported in the October issue of Current Anthropology.

"e offer the hypothesis that the Neanderthal demise occurred abruptly (on a geological time-scale) … after the most powerful volcanic activity in western Eurasia during the period of Neanderthal evolutionary history," the researchers write. "his catastrophe not only drastically destroyed the ecological niches of Neanderthal populations but also caused their mass physical depopulation."

Evidence for the catastrophe comes from Mezmaiskaya cave in the Caucasus Mountains of southern Russia, a site rich in Neanderthal bones and artifacts. Recent excavations of the cave revealed two distinct layers of volcanic ash that coincide with large-scale volcanic events that occurred around 40,000 years ago, the researchers say.

Geological layers containing the ashes also hold evidence of an abrupt and potentially devastating climate change. Sediment samples from the two layers reveal greatly reduced pollen concentrations compared to surrounding layers. That's an indication of a dramatic shift to a cooler and dryer climate, the researchers say. Further, the second of the two eruptions seems to mark the end of Neanderthal presence at Mezmaiskaya. Numerous Neanderthal bones, stone tools, and the bones of prey animals have been found in the geological layers below the second ash deposit, but none are found above it.

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http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/10/101006094057.htm

[LiberalFighter]

1. Unfortunately, today too many exist from that time period.

[Warpy]

2. What killed them off was climate change

They were ideally suited for cold climates and not for warm. At least now we know we interbred and didn't just murder our closest cousins, although interbreeding was likely inefficient, at best.

The last volcanic eruption that was capable of killing off the entire species was Mt. Toba, 50,000 years ago, and it nearly killed us off, too.

[kristopher]

3. "Wiped out" my arse...

They obviously never met my buddy Fran.