Denisovans, an extinct human lineage distinct from modern humans and Neanderthals, inhabited the Altai Mountains in Siberia and the Tibetan Plateau for over 160,000 years, from around 200,000 to 40,000 years ago.
Analysis of over 2,500 animal bone fragments, including a Denisovan rib bone dated between 48,000 and 32,000 years old, from Baishiya Karst Cave on the Tibetan Plateau, reveals that Denisovans were skilled hunters and butchers, exploiting animals including blue sheep, woolly rhinoceros, yaks, horses, and small mammals for meat, bone marrow, and skinning.
The bone fragments exhibit cut marks and are accompanied by bone tools, suggesting exceptional adaptability to extreme high-altitude, low-oxygen environments, thriving on the Tibetan plateau for over 100,000 years.
The Denisovans' genetic signature has been found in modern human genomes, particularly in East Asian populations, suggesting interbreeding with Homo sapiens.
The Denisovans' extinction remain unclear.
Sources: Nature, Reuters, New York Times, CNN, Ars Technica, New Scientist, Newshub, Devdiscourse, YNA, The Express Tribune, Lanka Times, RocketNews, KION, Badische Zeitung, Xinhua, Inverse, Phys.org, ScienceBlog, Mirage News, EurekAlert, University of Reading.
This article was written in collaboration with Generative AI news company Alchemiq.
