New evidence for a 67,000-year-old human presence at Callao Cave, Luzon, Philippines
- PMID:20569967
- DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2010.04.008
New evidence for a 67,000-year-old human presence at Callao Cave, Luzon, Philippines
Abstract
Documentation of early human migrations through Island Southeast Asia and Wallacea en route to Australia has always been problematic due to a lack of well-dated human skeletal remains. The best known modern humans are from Niah Cave in Borneo (40-42ka), and from Tabon Cave on the island of Palawan, southwest Philippines (47+/-11ka). The discovery of Homo floresiensis on the island of Flores in eastern Indonesia has also highlighted the possibilities of identifying new hominin species on islands in the region. Here, we report the discovery of a human third metatarsal from Callao Cave in northern Luzon. Direct dating of the specimen using U-series ablation has provided a minimum age estimate of 66.7+/-1ka, making it the oldest known human fossil in the Philippines. Its morphological features, as well as size and shape characteristics, indicate that the Callao metatarsal definitely belongs to the genus Homo. Morphometric analysis of the Callao metatarsal indicates that it has a gracile structure, close to that observed in other small-bodied Homo sapiens. Interestingly, the Callao metatarsal also falls within the morphological and size ranges of Homo habilis and H. floresiensis. Identifying whether the metatarsal represents the earliest record of H. sapiens so far recorded anywhere east of Wallace's Line requires further archaeological research, but its presence on the isolated island of Luzon over 65,000 years ago further demonstrates the abilities of humans to make open ocean crossings in the Late Pleistocene.
Similar articles
- "Small size" in the Philippine human fossil record: is it meaningful for a better understanding of the evolutionary history of the negritos?Détroit F, Corny J, Dizon EZ, Mijares AS.Détroit F, et al.Hum Biol. 2013 Feb-Jun;85(1-3):45-65. doi: 10.3378/027.085.0303.Hum Biol. 2013.PMID:24297220
- A new species of Homo from the Late Pleistocene of the Philippines.Détroit F, Mijares AS, Corny J, Daver G, Zanolli C, Dizon E, Robles E, Grün R, Piper PJ.Détroit F, et al.Nature. 2019 Apr;568(7751):181-186. doi: 10.1038/s41586-019-1067-9. Epub 2019 Apr 10.Nature. 2019.PMID:30971845
- Further analyses of the structural organization of Homo luzonensis teeth: Evolutionary implications.Zanolli C, Kaifu Y, Pan L, Xing S, Mijares AS, Kullmer O, Schrenk F, Corny J, Dizon E, Robles E, Détroit F.Zanolli C, et al.J Hum Evol. 2022 Feb;163:103124. doi: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2021.103124. Epub 2022 Jan 5.J Hum Evol. 2022.PMID:34998272
- The size of scalable brain components in the human evolutionary lineage: with a comment on the paradox of Homo floresiensis.Conroy GC, Smith RJ.Conroy GC, et al.Homo. 2007;58(1):1-12. doi: 10.1016/j.jchb.2006.11.001. Epub 2007 Jan 22.Homo. 2007.PMID:17240374Review.
- Wallace's line, Wallacea, and associated divides and areas: history of a tortuous tangle of ideas and labels.Ali JR, Heaney LR.Ali JR, et al.Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc. 2021 Jun;96(3):922-942. doi: 10.1111/brv.12683. Epub 2021 Jan 27.Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc. 2021.PMID:33502095Review.
Cited by
- Human remains from the Pleistocene-Holocene transition of southwest China suggest a complex evolutionary history for East Asians.Curnoe D, Xueping J, Herries AI, Kanning B, Taçon PS, Zhende B, Fink D, Yunsheng Z, Hellstrom J, Yun L, Cassis G, Bing S, Wroe S, Shi H, Parr WC, Shengmin H, Rogers N.Curnoe D, et al.PLoS One. 2012;7(3):e31918. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0031918. Epub 2012 Mar 14.PLoS One. 2012.PMID:22431968Free PMC article.
- Sequence analyses of Malaysian Indigenous communities reveal historical admixture between Hoabinhian hunter-gatherers and Neolithic farmers.Aghakhanian F, Hoh BP, Yew CW, Kumar Subbiah V, Xue Y, Tyler-Smith C, Ayub Q, Phipps ME.Aghakhanian F, et al.Sci Rep. 2022 Aug 12;12(1):13743. doi: 10.1038/s41598-022-17884-8.Sci Rep. 2022.PMID:35962005Free PMC article.
- Carriers of mitochondrial DNA macrohaplogroup R colonized Eurasia and Australasia from a southeast Asia core area.Larruga JM, Marrero P, Abu-Amero KK, Golubenko MV, Cabrera VM.Larruga JM, et al.BMC Evol Biol. 2017 May 23;17(1):115. doi: 10.1186/s12862-017-0964-5.BMC Evol Biol. 2017.PMID:28535779Free PMC article.
- Human Dispersal Out of Africa: A Lasting Debate.López S, van Dorp L, Hellenthal G.López S, et al.Evol Bioinform Online. 2016 Apr 21;11(Suppl 2):57-68. doi: 10.4137/EBO.S33489. eCollection 2015.Evol Bioinform Online. 2016.PMID:27127403Free PMC article.Review.
- Human phylogeography and diversity.Harcourt AH.Harcourt AH.Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2016 Jul 19;113(29):8072-8. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1601068113.Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2016.PMID:27432967Free PMC article.
Publication types
MeSH terms
Substances
Related information
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources
Research Materials