Ancient Mystery Unlocked By This Scientific Discovery

Ancient Tooth From Young Girl Discovered in Cave Unlocks Mystery of Denisovans, a Sister Species of Modern Humans – SciTechDaily

Scientists have shown that Denisovans, a sister species of modern humans, lived in Laos from 164,000 to 131,000 years ago. Their findings have important implications for populations out of Africa and Australia.

An international team of researchers from Laos, Europe, the US, and Australia discovered a new cave. It’s located near the famous Tam Pà Ling Cave, where another important 70,000-year-old human (Homo sapiens) was previously found.

A Denisovan tooth was found in the newly discovered Laos cave, and its shape suggests it lived between 164,000 and 131,000 years ago.

Two teams of researchers dated the fossils in Ngu Hao Cave, Laos. Macquarie University and Southern Cross University dated the sediments surrounding the fossils, and Renaud Joannes-Boyau dated the fossils themselves.

The fossil remains can be used to date events and species in the landscape, which is crucial for understanding population mobility.

The fossils were scattered on the landscape when they were washed into the cave. The scientists found ancient proteins suggesting the fossil was a young, likely female, human aged between 3.5 – 8.5 years old.

Fabrice Demeter, assistant professor of Palaeoanthropology at the University of Copenhagen, says the fossils found in the cave sediments show Denisovans lived in Southeast Asia.

Find out more about this fascinating discovery by checking out the news outlets below.

  1. Ancient Tooth From Young Girl Discovered in Cave Unlocks Mystery of Denisovans, a Sister Species of Modern Humans  SciTechDaily
  2. Ancient tooth of young girl may be linked to modern human evolution  USA TODAY
  3. Little Denisovan girl’s tooth found in Laos, proving species’ vast range  Haaretz
  4. Tooth from Laotian cave sheds light on enigmatic extinct humans  NBC News
  5. Ancient Molar Found in Laos Could Help Fill in a Gap in Human History  Smithsonian Magazine
  6. View Full Coverage on Google News