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On the height of Homo heidelbergensis
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16-04-2013 11:56pm#1From a Spanish news site; I'm translating the juicy bits as usual.
"Along with its enormous quantity of fossils, one of the important aspects of the Sima de los Huesos bone site in Atapuerca, Burgos, is the magnificent preservation state (...) allows us to estimate the height of species such as Homo heidelbergensis- which lived in Europe during the Middle Pleistocene and is the ancestor to Neanderthals- based only on the complete long bones, like arm and leg bones (...) and link them to a specific gender to calculate the height of both men and women.
The estimates to this date had been made based on incomplete remains and using formulas based on one single population as reference (...) Same has been done for Neanderthals and Cro Magnon.
The results indicate that both males and females in the Sima de los Huesos population were only slightly taller on average than Neanderthal males and females. "None of them can be considered short, but rather middle-sized and super-middle sized individuals, although there are also tall individuals" say the experts.
The height of both species is very similar to that of modern day central European and Mediterranean peoples (...) Cro Magnon were anatomically modern humans (...) present a stature significantly superior to other human species, with higher averages that would be classified as very tall individuals for both genders.
The article also states that the height of human species was "stable" for 2 million years, apart from small species like Homo floresiensis, Homo georgicus and Homo habilis.
(Disturbing bald neanderthal is disturbing... and bald)
Yet I remember reading somewhere that Homo georgicus was NOT as short as it has been said, being more similar in height to modern people as well. If only I could remember where I read it...
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My biggest issues with the Atapuerca site are the dating and species attribution. They look more like Neandertals to me and I reckon the site itself is younger. The possible symbolic nature of the interments is a bit iffy too.
I seem to recall reading of a South African population of heidelbergensis who were much taller on average? Heights are a hard one to judge because of the lack of real numbers in the fossil record. Atapuerca is great for that as they've loads of them. People then seemed to vary just as we do today. IIRC one of the Iranian Neandertal lads was just under a six footer, while another from the same group/family/tribe was 5' 4".
Yeah, I remember that you said something like that about the Atapuerca site... (was it you? nowadays I tend to think everything new I learn about these guys came from you :pac:)
I do remember about the giant African heidelbergensis.I always thought heidelbergensis were meant to be tall and lanky.
Not like variation in humans is unknown...
I bet if the fossilized skeletons of these two guys were found they would be considered separate species even if they were together...0 -
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