Human Remains from the Pleistocene-Holocene Transition of Southwest China Suggest a Complex Evolutionary History for East Asians

Abstract

BackgroundLater Pleistocene human evolution in East Asia remains poorly understood owing to a scarcity of well described, reliably classified and accurately dated fossils. Southwest China has been identified from genetic research as a hotspot of human diversity, containing ancient mtDNA and Y-DNA lineages, and has yielded a number of human remains thought to derive from Pleistocene deposits. We have prepared, reconstructed, described and dated a new partial skull from a consolidated sediment block collected in 1979 from the site of Longlin Cave (Guangxi Province). We also undertook new excavations at Maludong (Yunnan Province) to clarify the stratigraphy and dating of a large sample of mostly undescribed human remains from the site.Methodology/Principal FindingsWe undertook a detailed comparison of cranial, including a virtual endocast for the Maludong calotte, mandibular and dental remains from these two localities. Both samples probably derive from the same population, exhibiting an unusual mixture of modern human traits, characters probably plesiomorphic for later Homo, and some unusual features. We dated charcoal with AMS radiocarbon dating and speleothem with the Uranium-series technique and the results show both samples to be from the Pleistocene-Holocene transition: ∼14.3-11.5 ka.Conclusions/SignificanceOur analysis suggests two plausible explanations for the morphology sampled at Longlin Cave and Maludong. First, it may represent a late-surviving archaic population, perhaps paralleling the situation seen in North Africa as indicated by remains from Dar-es-Soltane and Temara, and maybe also in southern China at Zhirendong. Alternatively, East Asia may have been colonised during multiple waves during the Pleistocene, with the Longlin-Maludong morphology possibly reflecting deep population substructure in Africa prior to modern humans dispersing into Eurasia.

“Small Size” in the Philippine Human Fossil Record: Is it Meaningful for a Better Understanding of the Evolutionary History of the Negritos?

“…The study of this particularly large and robust specimen included also comparisons with several specimens of Pongo pygmaeus. Because of a certain confusion that arose after this publication (see, e.g., Curnoe et al 2012: 2, which also includes an incorrect quotation regarding the concerned specimens), we insist here that the hypothesis that this fragment of mandible could belong to an orangutan was clearly discarded on morphological grounds (Dizon et al 2002: 663-664). Apart from this large individual, several fossil specimens recovered from Tabon Cave could potentially correspond to the range of variation of morphology and especially size of the Philippine negrito.…”

Modern human origins: multiregional evolution of autosomes and East Asia origin of Y and mtDNA

“…Indeed several fossils in China show Neanderthal features such as the inner-ear formation in the ~100,000 year old Xujiayao and Xuchang Man (4,(74)(75)(76). Certain mysterious Southern China fossils such as the 11,500-15,500 year old 'Red Deer Cave' people with hybrid features of modern and archaic humans may also be candidates for Asian relatives of Neanderthals, especially considering their taurodont teeth (77). Early modern human fossils with typical Mongoloid features in South West China (Liujiang, Ziyang, Lijiang, and Chuandong) also have weak occipital buns commonly found in Neanderthals (4,75,78).…”

Anatomically modern human in Southeast Asia (Laos) by 46 ka

“…The oldest modern human remains from South Asia, at Fa Hein in Sri Lanka, are modestly younger at ∼36 ka (25,26). Early Holocene (14.3-11.5 ka) remains from southern China that were recently described as unique in their mixture of modern and archaic features (27) show common morphological features with Holocene human populations, notably in northern Indochinese provinces (28).…”