Hominin fossils from Morocco may be close ancestors of modern humans

Recent fossil discoveries in North Africa, dating back nearly three-quarters of a million years, have shed light on a potential common ancestor of Neanderthals, Denisovans, and modern humans. These findings suggest that the three hominin lineages diverged from a shared ancestor during this period.

Scientists believe that the last common ancestor of modern humans, Neanderthals, and Denisovans existed between 765,000 and 550,000 years ago. The exact timing and location of this ancestor have long been debated in the field of human evolution.

According to Jean-Jacques Hublin from the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany, the newly discovered fossils may not represent the exact common ancestor but are in close proximity to the point of divergence of ancient human lineages.

Hublin’s team examined several fossils found in a cave in Morocco, including adult and child jawbones and vertebrae. These fossils exhibit characteristics similar to early Homo sapiens and Neanderthals, while also resembling older African humans like Homo erectus.

The geological layers where the fossils were found allowed scientists to date them to approximately 773,000 years ago, coinciding with a significant shift in the Earth’s magnetic field. This discovery fills a crucial gap in the African hominin record between 1 million and 600,000 years ago.

These ancient hominins in Morocco were contemporaneous with another population in Spain known as Homo antecessor, which was previously considered a potential common ancestor of Homo sapiens and Neanderthals. Hublin suggests that genetic exchanges may have occurred between these populations across the Strait of Gibraltar.

Chris Stringer from the Natural History Museum in London emphasizes the importance of comparing these new fossils with existing ones to determine their place in the evolutionary timeline. He notes that these discoveries may represent an early sapiens ancestor in Africa.

Overall, these findings provide valuable insights into the complex evolutionary history of hominins and the origins of modern humans, Neanderthals, and Denisovans.