This Chinese province was a 'hunting paradise' for ancient humans
What's the story
Fossils of the extinct Denisovans have been discovered in China's Yunnan province, a region that was once a "hunting paradise" for these ancient humans. They lived during a global glacial period and their discovery is detailed in two papers published in the journal Nature. The research sheds light on the appearance, evolution, and behavior of this elusive human group.
Survival strategies
Adaptation to local environment
The Denisovans, an archaic human group that split from modern humans and Neanderthals hundreds of thousands of years ago, had developed a stable subsistence pattern in Yunnan's coniferous forests and forest-steppe environments.
The research suggests they were highly adapted to local resources through specialized hunting and the intensive exploitation of animals.
This indicates their survival strategies were closely tied to the region's biodiversity.
Archeological site
Major Denisovan locality
The studies detail Denisovan fossils, associated artifacts, and subsistence strategies discovered in Bianfu Cave in Yunnan.
This site has been established as a major Denisovan locality with the most abundant remains of this hominin group outside Denisova Cave in Siberia.
The findings were published in two separate papers co-authored by researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Yunnan Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology.
Research gap
Expanding our understanding of Denisovans
Since discovery in 2010, research on Denisovans has been limited to a few molecularly identified remains. This has left scientists with a poor understanding of the species. However, the recent findings from Yunnan have expanded our knowledge about these ancient humans and their subsistence strategies.