entity

Neanderthals

Also known as: Neanderthal

Facts (31)

Sources

The role of Plant Foods in the evolution and Dispersal of early Humans kernsverlag.com Kerns Verlag Jul 30, 2022 17 facts

claimNeanderthal hunting of large game in high-latitude Europe was likely supplemented by the consumption of carbohydrates and fats from plant foods, particularly during late winter when animal prey had lower body fat content.

claimNeanderthal populations at Figueira Brava Cave in Portugal harvested pine nuts, a behavior that required climbing mature pine trees, between 106,000 and 86,000 years ago.

claimIsotopic data regarding Neanderthal diets is preferentially available from archaeological sites in colder climates because warmer climates are less conducive to the survival of ancient collagen in human bones.

measurementAnalysis of individual amino acids indicates that plant food contributions to protein intake in Neanderthal diets were significant even in cold environments, such as up to 20% at Spy Cave in Belgium.

claimThe demographic expansion of modern human populations and the outcompetition of Neanderthal populations in Europe is argued to have been driven by the adaptive advantages of specialized division of labor, which increased dietary breadth, rather than by specific differences in cognitive or physiological capabilities.

claimSome Neanderthal populations in the southern latitudes of Europe exploited significant quantities of small vertebrates, avifauna, fish, marine mammals, and shellfish.

measurementPhytolith analysis of sediment samples at Amud Cave, Israel, provides evidence for the collection and likely consumption of grass seeds by the Neanderthal population between 70,000 and 55,000 years ago.

claimNitrogen isotope data from bulk collagen samples underestimates the significance of plant foods in Neanderthal diets because it only provides evidence for protein consumption, leading to an undercalculation of carbohydrate and fat intake from plants.

claimStarch grains recovered from Neanderthal dental calculus in Israel dating to 50,000–46,000 years ago show diagnostic processing damage, indicating the cooking and eating of starchy plant foods.

referencePrüfer et al. (2014) published the complete genome sequence of a Neanderthal individual from the Altai Mountains.

referenceStringer et al. (2008) documented evidence of Neanderthal exploitation of marine mammals in Gibraltar.

perspectivePlant foods likely contributed more significantly to Neanderthal diets than previously hypothesized, particularly for populations living in the southern range of their distribution.

claimNeanderthal sites, including Figueira Brava Cave, provide macrobotanical evidence indicating that Neanderthals exploited fatty tree nuts and fruits as part of their diet.

referenceWeyrich et al. (2017) analyzed ancient DNA from Neanderthal dental calculus to infer information about their behavior, diet, and disease, as published in the journal Nature.

claimNeanderthal populations in glacial, high-altitude Middle Paleolithic Europe relied heavily on hunting large animals, including wooly mammoths, gazelle, deer, wild horses, boar, bison, and wild cattle.

referenceHardy (2010) explored the implications of climatic variability and plant food distribution in Pleistocene Europe for Neanderthal diet and subsistence.

How do we know what they ate? - The Australian Museum australian.museum Australian Museum Oct 21, 2020 7 facts

perspectiveSome researchers argue that the evidence of cut marks on Neanderthal bones at Krapina Cave is inconclusive, suggesting that bone fragmentation may have resulted from cave-ins and that cut marks could be attributed to secondary burial practices rather than butchery.

claimNeanderthals consumed a diet high in meat and low in plant material, as indicated by the nitrogen isotope ratios in their bones.

claimNeanderthal bones recovered from El Sidron cave in Spain show evidence of butchery for flesh, including cut marks, deliberate breaks for marrow extraction, human defleshing, and smashed skulls.

claimOver 800 Neanderthal bones discovered at Krapina Cave in Croatia display cut marks and hammerstone fragments, with marrow-rich bones missing and marrow-poor bones remaining intact.

claimThe fossilised bones of Neanderthals (Homo neanderthalensis) contain nitrogen-15 and nitrogen-14 isotopes.

claimThe high ratio of nitrogen-15 to nitrogen-14 found in Neanderthal bones is similar to that found in the bone collagen of modern-day carnivores such as wolves.

claimNeanderthal bones found at Abri Moula in France exhibit cut marks consistent with butchery, resembling marks found on roe deer bones discovered in the same shelter.

Reviewing the Prehistoric Menu | American Scientist americanscientist.org Sandra J. Ackerman · American Scientist 4 facts

claimJohn Speth, an archaeologist at the University of Michigan, hypothesizes that Neanderthals and other early humans consumed putrefied meat, a practice that some modern human groups have also utilized.

claimPhytoliths found in Neanderthal tooth calculus indicate that Neanderthals consumed cooked plant foods 60,000 years ago, specifically precursors to barley, rye, and wheat.

claimNeanderthals were capable hunters who butchered and ate large animals, but they also consumed plants and cooked their food.

claimNeanderthals and other early humans shifted to selective hunting of specific species or adult males approximately 500,000 years ago, as evidenced by archaeological sites containing butchery-marked bones.

Paleolithic diet - Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org Wikipedia 3 facts

claimMicrofossils found in dental calculus from Neanderthal specimens Shanidar III (Iraq) and Spy I and II (Belgium) demonstrate that Neanderthals consumed plants and cooked foods.

claimThe Paleo diet, also known as the Paleolithic Diet, the Caveman diet, or the Stone Age Diet, is a dietary regimen that restricts consumption to foods presumed to be available to Neanderthals in the prehistoric era, while excluding dairy products, grains, sugar, legumes, processed oils, salt, alcohol, and coffee.

referenceHenry, Brooks, and Piperno's 2014 study 'Plant foods and the dietary ecology of Neanderthals and early modern humans' investigates the role of plant consumption in the dietary ecology of Neanderthals and early modern humans.