Max Planck Institute
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Illustration of Neanderthals that went extinct 35,000 to 40,000 years ago.
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Nationalgeographic.co.id—Scientists have conducted extensive studies on how Neanderthal (Homo neanderthalensis) has lived since the first hominid fossils were discovered in the 1800s. Researchers previously thought the early hominins only slept at night and hunted during the day.
However, new findings suggest that the Neanderthal work together to hunt bird in the evening. They even use tools like fire torches and nets for hunting bird–bird who live in the cave. Bird–bird it is part of the corvid family, as reported Vice.
To simulate how Neanderthal Foraging for food at night, researchers in Spain travel deep into caves and use nets and lights to catch bird–bird who was perched there. This study report has been published in the journal Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution on September 9, 2021.
“Here, we show that Neanderthals likely preyed on the chough, a bird that spent the night in caves, a preferred refuge for Neanderthals. We reconstructed how Neanderthals could have used fire to blind, confine, and capture night-flying choughs.” said Guillermo Blanco, a researcher with the National Museum of Natural Sciences in Madrid, in a written statement Frontiers.
Neanderthals, our closest human ancestors, went extinct 35,000 to 40,000 years ago. They hunted mammals, such as red deer in summer and wildebeest in winter, using sharp wooden spears and sewing clothes from animal skins. There is also evidence that Neanderthals hunted a variety of birds, including birds of prey, members of the crow family, and rock doves, the statement said. Smithsonian Magazine.
In this new study, the researchers focused on how Neanderthals hunted coughbirds that perched in the caves our ancestors used for shelter. Scientists first conducted a literature review to find out how many cough fossils were found in caves that also contained Neanderthal fossils or tools.
Also Read: The Lapedo Child Controversy: The Result of Human and Neanderthal Crossbreeding?
S. ENTRESSANGLE/E. DAYNES/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY
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Neanderthal human reconstruction. Neanderthals are an extinct species or subspecies of ancient humans that lived in Eurasia until about 40,000 years ago.
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In Europe, chough fossils are found in many Neanderthal caves, especially at archaeological sites on the Iberian Peninsula. At nine sites on the Iberian Peninsula, chough remains had charcoal marks, bite marks, or tool scars, according to Vice.
Then, the team decided to test their hypothesis. For several years, researchers visited existing caves and learned how to catch a cough with their bare hands under the darkness of the night.
They used lights to startle the resting birds and simulated a torch that Neanderthals might have carried to search for the birds.
Also Read: What Was the Variety of Neanderthal Man-Made Stone Tools Like?
All bird tied up and released unharmed after the attempted arrest. In 296 experimental trials in 70 perches bird, scientists captured a total of 5,525 bird.
“We conclude that chough is uniquely susceptible to Neanderthal if they use artificial light, like fire, in the caves at night,” said Antonio Sánchez-Marco, a paleo-ornithologist at the Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont in Barcelona who was one of the authors of the study.
Luka Mjeda, Zagreb
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Eagle claws were used by Neanderthals for jewelry, such as necklaces or bracelets.
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“We found that when surprised, bird–bird cough tries to escape outside, in which case you can catch it with a net at the entrance, or escape up to the ceiling, where you can often catch it by hand. produce enough energy to become complete food for Neanderthal adults, while some skilled hunters can easily catch 40 to 60 coughs per night,” said Miquel Crusafont, another researcher in Barcelona.
Behavior and social skills needed to capture bird–bird it’s in line with the way of life Neanderthal socially in groups of 10 to 20 adults and their children. Because bird cough hard to catch during the day in the open, night hunting habit of para Neanderthal it reveals impressive details about their anatomical, technological, and cognitive abilities.
The researchers added that bird–bird it could have been a nutritious meal for these early hominids. Because meat bird it contains carotenoids, an essential micronutrient for the body.
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