José-María Bermúdez de Castro

A complete human pelvis from the Middle Pleistocene of Spain

The Middle Pleistocene site of Sima de los Huesos in Sierra de Atapuerca, Spain, has yielded around 2,500 fossils from at least 33different hominid individuals. These have been dated at more than 200,000 years ago and have been classified as ancestors of Neanderthals,. An almost complete human male pelvis (labelled Pelvis 1) has been found, which we associate with two fragmentary femora. Pelvis 1 is robust and very broad with a very long superior pubic ramus, marked iliac flare, and a long femoral neck. This pattern is probably the primitive condition from which modern humans departed. A modern human newborn would pass through the birth canal of Pelvis 1 and this would be even larger in a female individual. We estimate the body mass of this individual at 95 kg or more. Using the cranial capacities of three specimens from Sima de los Huesos, the encephalization quotients are substantially smaller than in Neanderthals and modern humans.

Dental remains from Atapuerca/Ibeas (Spain) II. Morphology

Abstract A morphological and comparative study of 68 human fossil teeth from the “Sima de los Huesos” (Sierra de Atapuerca, Ibeas de Juarros, Burgos, Spain) is presented. The Ibeas teeth share certain morphological traits with those of other western European, northwest African and eastern Asian Middle Pleistocene hominids. However, the dental morphology of the European group, in which the Ibeas human fossils are included, presents remarkable differences from that of the other groups, especially in the postcanine teeth. This fact supports the thesis that an independent hominid line was established in Europe during the Middle Pleistocene. Furthermore, the Ibeas teeth present new evidence favouring the hypothesis of a close phylogenetic relationship between the European Middle Pleistocene population and the Neandertals, and of local evolutionary continuity in Europe during the Middle and early Upper Pleistocene.

The Medial Pterygoid Tubercle in the Atapuerca Early and Middle Pleistocene Mandibles: Evolutionary Implications

Numerous studies have attempted to identify the presence of uniquely derived (autoapomorphic) Neandertal features. Here, we deal with the medial pterygoid tubercle (MTP), which is usually present on the internal face of the ascending ramus of Neandertal specimens. Our study stems from the identification of a hypertrophied tubercle in ATD6-96, an Early Pleistocene mandible recovered from the TD6 level of the Atapuerca-Gran Dolina site and attributed to Homo antecessor. Our review of the literature and study of numerous original fossil specimens and high quality replicas confirm that the MTP occurs at a high frequency in Neandertals (ca. 89%) and is also present in over half (ca. 55%) of the Middle Pleistocene Sima de los Huesos (SH) hominins. In contrast, it is generally absent or minimally developed in other extinct hominins, but can be found in variable frequencies (<ca. 25%) in Pleistocene and recent H. sapiens samples. The presence of this feature in ATD6-96 joins other traits shared by H. antecessor, the SH hominins and Neandertals. Since the TD6 hominins have been attributed either to MIS 21 or to MIS 25, it seems that a suite of assumed derived Neandertal features appeared in the Early Pleistocene, and they should be interpreted as synapomorphies shared among different taxa. We suggest that H. antecessor, the SH hominins and Neandertals shared a common ancestor in which these features appeared during the Early Pleistocene. The presence of the MTP in taxa other than H. neanderthalensis precludes this feature from being a Neandertal autapomorphy.

A reassessment of the Montmaurin-La Niche mandible (Haute Garonne, France) in the context of European Pleistocene human evolution

We here present a comparative study of the Montmaurin-LN Middle Pleistocene mandible (Haute-Garonne, France). This mandible, of which its right and left molar series are preserved in situ, was found in La Niche cave (Montmaurin’s karst system) in 1949, and was first attributed to the ‘Mindel-Riss’ interglacial (= MIS 9 to 11) based on its geological context. Later studies based on geological and faunal evidence have attributed the Montmaurin-LN mandible to MIS 7. Following a detailed morphological and metric comparative study of the mandible in the 1970s, it was interpreted in the light of a still limited fossil record and the prevailing paradigm back then. Waiting for geochronological studies in the forthcoming years, here we review the main morphological and metrical features of this mandible and its molars, which have been reassessed in the framework of a remarkably enlarged Pleistocene fossil record since the mandible was first described, and our current, more in-depth understanding of human evolution in Europe. Using a selection of mandibular features with potential taxonomic signal we have found that the Montmaurin-LN mandible shares only a few derived traits with Neandertals. Our analyses reveal that this mandible is more closely related to the ancient specimens from the African and Eurasian Early and Middle Pleistocene, particularly due to the presence of primitive features of the Homo clade. In contrast, the external morphology of the molars is clearly similar to that of Neandertals. The results are assessed in the light of the present competing hypotheses used to explain the European hominin fossil record.

Analyse morphométrique comparée des dents humaines de Gran Dolina (TD6) et de Sima de los Huesos d'Atapuerca

Comparative Morphometric Analysis of the Human Dental Samples of Gran Dolina (TD6) and Sima de los Huesos caves sites at Atapuerca. We present a comparative morphometric study of the human dental samples yielded by the Lower Pleistocene site of Gran Dolina (TD6 Aurora Stratum) and the Middle Pleistocene site of Sima de los Huesos (SH) from the Sierra de Atapuerca (Burgos, Spain). The remarkable size and shape differences between the TD6 and SH sample concern, especially, to the anterior vs. posterior size relationship. In the SH hominids, the strong size reduction of the posterior teeth, which reached a degree similar to that of the modern populations, implied the appearance of a set of derived traits, such as the crown and root simplification of the lower premolars, the absence of cingulum, the relative greater size reduction of the lower second premolar and second molar, or the reduction and absence of cusps of the upper and lower molars (hypocone and hypoconulid). The TD6 hominids, in contrast, exhibit a size balance between the anterior dentition and the posterior one, together with the retention of most plesiomorphies for the genus Homo. These observations imply important differences for certain dental development parameters of the two hominid populations, which justifies their taxonomical distinction. On the other hand, the SH hominids and the Neandertalians exhibit a similarity of most dental traits examined, which supports the hypothesis of a reproductive continuity (phyletic evolution) in Europe during the Middle and early Upper Pleistocene.

Four millennia of Iberian biomolecular prehistory illustrate the impact of prehistoric migrations at the far end of Eurasia

Significance The gene pool of modern Europeans was shaped through prehistoric migrations that reached the Western Mediterranean last. Obtaining biomolecular data has been challenging due to poor preservation related to adverse climatic conditions in this region. Here, we study the impact of prehistoric (Neolithic–Bronze Age) migrations in Iberia by analyzing genomic and dietary data, demonstrating that farming practices were introduced by a population genetically distinct from the first farmers in central and northern Europe. After recovering from a founder bottleneck, these first farmers mixed with local hunter-gatherers. Finally, post-Neolithic migrations had a much smaller impact on the Iberian gene pool than they had in other parts of Europe. Stable isotope analysis reveals a homogenous terrestrial diet throughout this period. Population genomic studies of ancient human remains have shown how modern-day European population structure has been shaped by a number of prehistoric migrations. The Neolithization of Europe has been associated with large-scale migrations from Anatolia, which was followed by migrations of herders from the Pontic steppe at the onset of the Bronze Age. Southwestern Europe was one of the last parts of the continent reached by these migrations, and modern-day populations from this region show intriguing similarities to the initial Neolithic migrants. Partly due to climatic conditions that are unfavorable for DNA preservation, regional studies on the Mediterranean remain challenging. Here, we present genome-wide sequence data from 13 individuals combined with stable isotope analysis from the north and south of Iberia covering a four-millennial temporal transect (7,500–3,500 BP). Early Iberian farmers and Early Central European farmers exhibit significant genetic differences, suggesting two independent fronts of the Neolithic expansion. The first Neolithic migrants that arrived in Iberia had low levels of genetic diversity, potentially reflecting a small number of individuals; this diversity gradually increased over time from mixing with local hunter-gatherers and potential population expansion. The impact of post-Neolithic migrations on Iberia was much smaller than for the rest of the continent, showing little external influence from the Neolithic to the Bronze Age. Paleodietary reconstruction shows that these populations have a remarkable degree of dietary homogeneity across space and time, suggesting a strong reliance on terrestrial food resources despite changing culture and genetic make-up.

Right-handed fossil humans

Fossil hominids often processed material held between their upper and lower teeth. Pulling with one hand and cutting with the other, they occasionally left impact cut marks on the lip (labial) surface of their incisors and canines. From these actions, it possible to determine the dominant hand used. The frequency of these oblique striations in an array of fossil hominins documents the typically modern pattern of 9 right‐ to 1 left‐hander. This ratio among living Homo sapiens differs from that among chimpanzees and bonobos and more distant primate relatives. Together, all studies of living people affirm that dominant right‐handedness is a uniquely modern human trait. The same pattern extends deep into our past. Thus far, the majority of inferred right‐handed fossils come from Europe, but a single maxilla from a Homo habilis, OH‐65, shows a predominance of right oblique scratches, thus extending right‐handedness into the early Pleistocene of Africa. Other studies show right‐handedness in more recent African, Chinese, and Levantine fossils, but the sample compiled for non‐European fossil specimens remains small. Fossil specimens from Sima del los Huesos and a variety of European Neandertal sites are predominately right‐handed. We argue the 9:1 handedness ratio in Neandertals and the earlier inhabitants of Europe constitutes evidence for a modern pattern of handedness well before the appearance of modern Homo sapiens.