Neanderthals were thought to be part of a single, genetically homogeneous population that lived in Spain, France, Croatia, Belgium and Germany. Studies speak of a uniform population that would eventually give way to Homo sapiens. Within a few millennia the symbiosis of these two species in Europe ended with the replacement of the Neanderthals.
Research into Neanderthal remains recently unearthed in a cave in France, published in the journal Cell Genomics, reinforces one of the main scientific explanations for their extinction around 40,000 years ago: that it may have been due to their antisocial lifestyle.
Researchers, from the Universities of Toulouse and Copenhagen, have identified the remains of a Neanderthal male in a cave in southern France, who appears to be one of the last Neanderthals to have lived: the genome is only the fifth of its kind to be found in the West Europe under 50,000 years old.
By studying other Neanderthals that have been found, the researchers concluded that the Neanderthals were actually separate populations that developed only infrequent exchanges with each other. Multiple isolated communities may have existed in western Europe until their extinction.
“When we look at these Neanderthal genomes, we see that they are quite inbred and therefore don’t have a lot of genetic diversity. They lived in small groups for many generations. We know that inbreeding reduces the genetic diversity in a population, which can be detrimental to their ability to survive in the long term,” explains one of the researchers, Associate Professor at the University of Copenhagen, Martin Sikora. In contrast, compared to Neanderthals, early modern humans were more likely to associate with other groups, which is an advantage for survival.
“Thorin”, the last Neanderthal
The remains of one of the “last” Neanderthals shed new light on the history of these first humans. The authors – led by archaeologist Ludovic Slimak, a researcher at the Université Paul Sabatier in Toulouse, France – named the Neanderthal “Thorin,” after the character in the 1937 novel “The Hobbit” by J. Tolkien. Thorin was a dwarf king and the last of his generation.
“Thorin of Madrin is, in turn, one of the last Neanderthals,” Slimak notes in an article on The Conversation website. After Thorin’s discovery, the research team analyzed his DNA and uncovered shocking evidence.
According to the study, Thorin lived in a small, isolated community between about 42,000 and 50,000 years ago. This is a Neanderthal generation very ancient, which has not been studied much. The population apparently diverged from the rest of the known “late Neanderthals” who lived about 100,000 years ago, and remained genetically isolated for more than 50,000 years, according to the study’s authors.
Read also
SYRIZA: “No one is above the statute” said the PG to Kasselakis – “I am here” he says himself – The whole background
Lost training funds
“You will find a way…” – Lagarde’s message to EU governments on the Draghi report
Zelensky set a trap at Kursk but fell through
A rickety playground
Schools: Why there will be no classes on September 27
Mystery solved: What caused the seismic waves that shook the Earth for 9 days in 2023 (Video)
#Neanderthal #disappeared #Thorin #revealed #French #cave
