Posted on 04/02/2016 2:37:38 PM PDT by SunkenCiv
Scientists from the University of Oxford and the University of Manchester have used a new technique, "Zooarchaeology by Mass Spectrometry," or ZooMS, to identify more than 2,000 bone fragments recovered from Russia's Denisova Cave. ZooMS analyzes the collagen peptide sequences in bone, which can then be used to identify its species. Among the remains of mammoths, woolly rhino, wolf, and reindeer, the researchers found one Neanderthal bone. "When the ZooMS results showed that there was a human fingerprint among the bones I was extremely excited. ...The bone itself is not exceptional in any way and would otherwise be missed by anyone looking for possible human bones amongst the dozens of fragments we have from the site," Sam Brown of the University of Oxford said in a press release. Svante Pääbo and his team at the Max Planck Institute then examined the mitochondrial genome of the bone to identify it as Neanderthal. Radiocarbon dating of the bone revealed it is more than 50,000 years old. Acid etching on its surface suggests that it passed through the stomach of a hyena before landing in the cave's sediments.
(Excerpt) Read more at archaeology.org ...
KEYWORDS: neandertal; neandertals; neanderthal; neanderthals
The Neandertal Enigma"Frayer's own reading of the record reveals a number of overlooked traits that clearly and specifically link the Neandertals to the Cro-Magnons. One such trait is the shape of the opening of the nerve canal in the lower jaw, a spot where dentists often give a pain-blocking injection. In many Neandertal, the upper portion of the opening is covered by a broad bony ridge, a curious feature also carried by a significant number of Cro-Magnons. But none of the alleged 'ancestors of us all' fossils from Africa have it, and it is extremely rare in modern people outside Europe." [pp 126-127]
by James Shreeve
in local libraries
Interesting, the Neaderthals were therefore not invited to dinner by the Denisovans, they were dinner (at least by the Hyenas)
OK I give up! How the He!! do they know it was a hyena the ate him?
How the He!! do they know it was a hyena the ate him?
It is obvious that he is a scientist and what he says is true.
Well, they do know it wasn’t the other way around.
Could have been scavenged.
not clear on what is supposed to have happened :
(a)-a hyena ate a neanderthal and then entered or was bout to Mr. D’s cave
(b)-Mr. D lived with Mrs. N, and later was eaten by a hyena
(c)-Mr. N killed and ate Mr. D, and the hyena had leftovers.
(d) all, or none, of the above
so, which was it?
mistfree: "OK I give up! How the He!! do they know it was a hyena the ate him?"
Obviously, they don't know, are merely suggesting a likely possibility.
Why likely?
Well, because hyenas are the world's apex scavengers, and it's considered unlikely that Neanderthals would be brought down by a predator.
The Denisova cave findings included 27 species of large & medium sized animals, including as this article mentions mammoths, woolly rhino, wolf, and reindeer, but also cave lions and cave hyenas.
So, perhaps there were more hyena bones than other predators, or hyenas more closely associated in stratigraphy, or even something about hyena digestion which makes bones more likely to pass through?
But I'd suppose it just as likely that Denisovans were the first Democrat politicians, about whom it's well known that if you are not at their negotiating table, then you will certainly be on their menu.
Hyenas? Well, political jackals for sure.
Cave hyena reconstruction, cave lion drawing, actual lion & jackal:
That’s why I bolded the word ‘suggests.’ No one said they ‘know’ anything, nor did they reference a possibility.
A Cave Hyena could take down a Neanderthal or just about anything else including Cave or Short-faced Bears; they likely hunted in packs as their modern cousins do.
Where oh where has reading comprehension gone these days?
I understood you perfectly, just thought you might be interested in my response to the question posed.
No offense intended, FRiend.
Thanks BroJoeK.
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