130,000-Year-Old Mastodon Skeleton Suggests Humans Could Have Been in America 100,000 Years Before Previously Thought
Surface of mastodon bone showing half impact notch on a segment of femur. Image credit: San Diego Natural History Museum
The implications of this discovery are enormous, with the potential of turning North American archaeology upside down. For decades, it has been widely accepted that humans did not arrive in the Americas until around 15,000 years ago, with the Clovis culture being the first known human inhabitants. But this new evidence suggests that people were in America more than 100,000 years earlier than previously thought.
However, the researchers were careful to point out that their findings are preliminary, and that more research is needed to confirm the true nature of the marks and fractures on the mastodon bones. They have also suggested that the humans who butchered the mastodon may not have been the ancestors of modern Native Americans, but rather a different group of people who migrated to the Americas via a land bridge or by boat.
During the excavation, a number of unbroken mastodon ribs and vertebrae were discovered, including a vertebra with a well-preserved neural spine. Image credit: San Diego Natural History Museum
The discovery is not only important for American prehistory but also for understanding human evolution and migration patterns. Not only does it push back the known presence of humans in the Americas by more than 100,000 years, it may also imply that human populations were capable of more sophisticated technologies, such as using tools and weapons, much earlier than previously thought. The findings are expected to spark further research and excavations in the area, which will undoubtedly yield more insights into the mysterious past of human evolution and migration.
The implications of this discovery are enormous, with the potential of turning North American archaeology upside down. For decades, it has been widely accepted that humans did not arrive in the Americas until around 15,000 years ago, with the Clovis culture being the first known human inhabitants. But this new evidence suggests that people were in America more than 100,000 years earlier than previously thought.
However, the researchers were careful to point out that their findings are preliminary, and that more research is needed to confirm the true nature of the marks and fractures on the mastodon bones. They have also suggested that the humans who butchered the mastodon may not have been the ancestors of modern Native Americans, but rather a different group of people who migrated to the Americas via a land bridge or by boat.
During the excavation, a number of unbroken mastodon ribs and vertebrae were discovered, including a vertebra with a well-preserved neural spine. Image credit: San Diego Natural History Museum
The discovery is not only important for American prehistory but also for understanding human evolution and migration patterns. Not only does it push back the known presence of humans in the Americas by more than 100,000 years, it may also imply that human populations were capable of more sophisticated technologies, such as using tools and weapons, much earlier than previously thought. The findings are expected to spark further research and excavations in the area, which will undoubtedly yield more insights into the mysterious past of human evolution and migration.
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18 August 2023
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