A team of researchers at the University of Winnipeg led by palaeoanthropologist Dr Mirjana Roksandic has come up with the naming of a new species of a human ancestor called Homo bodoensis.
This species lived during the Middle Pleistocene in Africa. They were here around half a million years ago and is the direct ancestor of modern humans.
The Middle Pleistocene is important as this period also saw the rise of our own species (Homo sapiens) in Africa. They are our closest relatives and the Neanderthals (Homo neanderthalensis) in Europe.
Also, human evolution during this age is not much understood. This is a problem which the paleoanthropologists call the muddle in the middle.
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Now, this announcement of Homo bodoensis hopes to bring some clarity to this muddle.
This new name is based on a reassessment of existing fossils from Africa and Eurasia from this time period.
The name bodoensis derives from a skull found in Bodo D’ar, Ethiopia. Moreover, this new species is understood to be a direct human ancestor.
Moreover, this introduction of H. bodoensis aims to cut the Gordian knot. It will also allow us to communicate clearly about this important period in human evolution, as per scientists.
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