New species of ancient humans found
A huge haul of bones found in a small, dark chamber at the back of a cave in South Africa may be the remnants of a new species of ancient human relative.
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| A replica of the skull of a newly discovered ancient species, "Homo naledi" - named in honour of the "Rising Star" cave where it was found. Naledi means "star" in South Africa's Sesotho language. |
Explorers happened upon the bones after squeezing through a fissure high up in the rear wall of the Rising Star cave, 50 km from Johannesburg, before descending down a long, narrow chute to the chamber floor 40 metres beneath the surface.
They recovered more than 1,500 pieces of bone belonging to at least 15 individuals. The remains appear to be infants, juveniles and one very old adult.
Thousands more pieces of bone are still in the chamber, smothered in the soft dirt that covers the ground.
The leaders of the National Geographic-funded project believe the bones — as yet undated — represent a new species of ancient human relative.
They have named the creature Homo naledi, where naledi means “star” in Sesotho, a local South African language.
But other experts on human origins say the claim is unjustified. — © Guardian Newspapers Limited, 2015
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