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Fossils: Early humans settled in Norfolk (pp 229-233; N&V)
Newly discovered artefacts and fossils found in a UK river deposit indicate that early humans were living in northern Europe more than 780,000 years ago. The finds, revealed in this week’s Nature, tell us much about the dispersal of early humans out of Africa, and will likely prompt a re-evaluation of the adaptations and capabilities of early humans.
Hominins colonized Eurasia fairly swiftly after they left Africa more than 1.8 million years ago. Still largely adapted to warm climates, it was thought that humans didn’t penetrate further north than 45 degrees, except in exceptionally warm intervals. The new study, by Nick Ashton and colleagues, changes all that. The finds demonstrate that humans were capable of penetrating northern Europe in cooler intervals, right to the edge of the boreal zone.
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Nick Ashton and Chris Stringer will discuss their work and there will be an opportunity for photos of some of the artefacts.
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