It took scientists a long time to reach conclusions

The researchers identified the new species based in part on a very large skull found in China. So what is this new species, and how does it help paleoanthropologists understand hominin variation during the Middle Pleistocene, 300,000 to 50,000 years ago? Here are the answers to the news in Nature Communications, which Channel 24 met.

After evolving about 300,000 years ago, Homo sapiens rapidly spread from Africa to Europe and Asia. For decades, paleoanthropologists have been trying to understand how hominins evolved before modern humans, particularly between 700,000 and 300,000 years ago, when many other early human species existed.

For example, anthropologists have found fossils of species such as Homo heidelbergensis in Western Europe and Homo longi in Central China, but not everyone agrees that each represents a separate species. These fossils have also been lumped together under general terms such as “archaic Homo sapiens” and “Middle Pleistocene Man” and are sometimes informally referred to as “the mess in the middle.”

Writing about the hominin fossil findings in China in the journal The Innovation in 2023, anthropologist Christopher Bey of the University of Hawaii at Manoa, paleoanthropologist Xu Jie Wu of the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and colleagues said: It hinders efforts to fully understand the evolutionary relationships between them.

In a study published in May 2024 in the journal PaleoAnthropology, Wu and Bei described a series of unusual hominin fossils found decades ago at Xujiayao in northern China. The skull was quite large and broad, with some Neanderthal features. But it also shared characteristics with modern humans and Denisovans.

Taken together, these fossils represent a new form of large-brained hominin (Juluren) that was widespread throughout much of East Asia during the Late Quaternary. [від 300 000 до 50 000 років тому]”,
– they write.

Fossil specimens corresponding to Homo juluensis (blue five-pointed star) / Photo: C. Bae and X. Wu

Bay and Wu say in a commentary published Nov. 2 in the journal Nature Communications. Increasing number of fossils in East Asia necessitates new terminology. They say dividing the “archaic Homo” from this region into at least four species (H. floresiensis, H. luzonensis, H. longi, and the recently named H. juluensis) will help researchers better understand the complexity of human evolution.

The new name, H. juluensis, is based on fossils found at Xujiayao and Xuchang in central China, dating to between 220,000 and 100,000 years ago. In 1974, excavators discovered more than 10,000 stone artifacts and 21 hominin fossil fragments representing approximately 10 different individuals at Xujiayao. All skull bones testify to this These hominins had large brains and thick skulls. The four ancient skulls from Xuchang are also quite large and resemble Neanderthal skulls.

Fossils from Xujiayao / Photo: C. Bae and X. Wu

By looking at the mix of features present in these groups of fossils, Wu and Bey concluded in a paper published in May 2024 that “they represent a hominin population new to the region, namely juluren, meaning ‘big-headed people’.” ‘

Although H. juluensis is a taxonomically new hominin species, this does not mean that they are genetically isolated. They may be the product of mating between different species of Middle Pleistocene hominins.The authors write that it “supports the idea of ​​continuity of interbreeding as a major force shaping human evolution in East Asia,” including among Neanderthals.

Although H. juluensis is not yet universally accepted, the name is gaining popularity among experts.

Toothed upper jaw bone / Photo: C. Bae and X. Wu

Looks like not everyone agrees

Paleoanthropologist Chris Stringer of the Natural History Museum in London has a slightly more skeptical view. He says his work with Chinese colleagues suggests that H. juluensis material may actually be a better match for Homo longi.

I don’t think having a large skull is a very useful identifying characteristic. But [скам’янілості з місцевості] Xuchang certainly looks different, with more Neanderthal features, so their classification is less precise.
– says Stringer.

Clearly, we need more research and more findings to confirm or refute the findings of this study.