Million-year-old tools are clue in mystery of ‘hobbit humans'
Homo erectus likely underwent hundreds of thousands of years of dwarfism on that remote island to evolve into the hobbit species. Exactly how this happened is a mystery million-year-old stone tools found on Indonesia's Sulawesi island could help unravel, researchers say.
The tools include sharp-edged stone fragments that the ancient humans made from riverbed pebbles.
Previous research suggested the Wallacea archipelago was occupied from at least 1.02 million years ago, based on the presence of stone tools at Wolo Sege on Flores, while Talepu on Sulawesi was inhabited around 194,000 years ago.
The latest find at Calio indicates early humans reached Sulawesi far earlier than thought, 'at around the same time as Flores, if not earlier'.
The stone artefacts point to the island being a tool-making site and a hunting ground nearly 1.04 million years ago.
'Sulawesi is a wild card. It is like a mini-continent in itself,' study co-author Adam Brumm said. 'This discovery adds to our understanding of the movement of extinct humans across the Wallace Line, a transitional zone beyond which unique and often quite peculiar animal species evolved in isolation.'
The findings also raise questions about the evolution of the 'hobbit' humans.
'If hominins were cut off on this huge and ecologically rich island for a million years, would they have undergone the same evolutionary changes as the Flores hobbits? Or would something totally different have happened?' Dr Brumm said. 'It's a significant piece of the puzzle, but the Calio site has yet to yield any hominin fossils. So while we now know there were tool-makers on Sulawesi a million years ago, their identity remains a mystery.'
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Irish Independent
11-08-2025
- Irish Independent
Million-year-old tools are clue in mystery of ‘hobbit humans'
The hobbit, Homo floresiensis, was a small-bodied human species that likely emerged from the Homo erectus after they had crossed the marine barrier around South-East Asia to inhabit Indonesia's Flores island a million years ago. Homo erectus likely underwent hundreds of thousands of years of dwarfism on that remote island to evolve into the hobbit species. Exactly how this happened is a mystery million-year-old stone tools found on Indonesia's Sulawesi island could help unravel, researchers say. The tools include sharp-edged stone fragments that the ancient humans made from riverbed pebbles. Previous research suggested the Wallacea archipelago was occupied from at least 1.02 million years ago, based on the presence of stone tools at Wolo Sege on Flores, while Talepu on Sulawesi was inhabited around 194,000 years ago. The latest find at Calio indicates early humans reached Sulawesi far earlier than thought, 'at around the same time as Flores, if not earlier'. The stone artefacts point to the island being a tool-making site and a hunting ground nearly 1.04 million years ago. 'Sulawesi is a wild card. It is like a mini-continent in itself,' study co-author Adam Brumm said. 'This discovery adds to our understanding of the movement of extinct humans across the Wallace Line, a transitional zone beyond which unique and often quite peculiar animal species evolved in isolation.' The findings also raise questions about the evolution of the 'hobbit' humans. 'If hominins were cut off on this huge and ecologically rich island for a million years, would they have undergone the same evolutionary changes as the Flores hobbits? Or would something totally different have happened?' Dr Brumm said. 'It's a significant piece of the puzzle, but the Calio site has yet to yield any hominin fossils. So while we now know there were tool-makers on Sulawesi a million years ago, their identity remains a mystery.'
Irish Independent
08-08-2025
- Irish Independent
Million-year-old tools are clue in mystery of ‘hobbit humans'
The hobbit, Homo floresiensis, was a small-bodied human species that likely emerged from the Homo erectus after they had crossed the marine barrier around South-East Asia to inhabit Indonesia's Flores island a million years ago. Homo erectus likely underwent hundreds of thousands of years of dwarfism on that remote island to evolve into the hobbit species. Exactly how this happened is a mystery million-year-old stone tools found on Indonesia's Sulawesi island could help unravel, researchers say. The tools include sharp-edged stone fragments that the ancient humans made from riverbed pebbles. Previous research suggested the Wallacea archipelago was occupied from at least 1.02 million years ago, based on the presence of stone tools at Wolo Sege on Flores, while Talepu on Sulawesi was inhabited around 194,000 years ago. The latest find at Calio indicates early humans reached Sulawesi far earlier than thought, 'at around the same time as Flores, if not earlier'. The stone artefacts point to the island being a tool-making site and a hunting ground nearly 1.04 million years ago. 'Sulawesi is a wild card. It is like a mini-continent in itself,' study co-author Adam Brumm said. 'This discovery adds to our understanding of the movement of extinct humans across the Wallace Line, a transitional zone beyond which unique and often quite peculiar animal species evolved in isolation.' The findings also raise questions about the evolution of the 'hobbit' humans. 'If hominins were cut off on this huge and ecologically rich island for a million years, would they have undergone the same evolutionary changes as the Flores hobbits? Or would something totally different have happened?' Dr Brumm said. 'It's a significant piece of the puzzle, but the Calio site has yet to yield any hominin fossils. So while we now know there were tool-makers on Sulawesi a million years ago, their identity remains a mystery.'
Extra.ie
25-05-2025
- Extra.ie
140,000 year old bones found under ocean hint at lost world
Bones that are thought to be more than 140,000 years old have been discovered buried in the sea off the Indonesian coast, hinting to a previously unknown population in South East Asia. The skull of Homo erectus was preserved under layers of silt and sand in the Madura Strait between the islands of Java and Madura. The skull bones were found among 6,000 animal fossils of 36 species including buffalos, deer, elephants and Komodo dragons. The skull of Homo erectus was preserved under layers of silt and sand in the Madura Strait between the islands of Java and Madura. Pic: Régis BOSSU/Sygma via Getty Images Experts say this is the first time evidence of life in the lost world has been seen. These lost lands were called Sundaland and were once connected to Southeast Asia in a vast tropical plain. Some of the bones and fossils discovered had deliberate marks on them, indicating that the early humans were practicing hunting strategies. The fossils were found by maritime sand miners in 2011, but experts have just managed to establish further details such as the age and species. Bones that are thought to be more than 140,000 years old have been discovered buried in the sea off the Indonesian coast, hinting to a previously unknown population in South East Asia. Pic: Getty Images Harold Berghuis, an archaeologist at the University of Leiden in the Netherlands led the investigation and says the period is characterized by 'great morphological diversity and mobility of hominin populations in the region.' Sundaland was submerged in water between 7,000 and 14,000 years ago after melting glaciers caused the sea levels to rise more than 120 meters. Following the discovery of 6,000 fossils and two human skull garments, scientists carried out detailed surveys where they collected and catalogued their findings to investigate. Homo erectus were the first early humans to resemble us more closely. They had taller, more muscular bodies with longer legs and shorter arms. Pic: Getty Images Researchers examined the layers where the fossils were discovered and came across a buried valley system from the ancient Solo River, which once flowed across the now-submerged Sunda Shelf. Homo erectus were the first early humans to resemble us more closely. They had taller, more muscular bodies with longer legs and shorter arms. The skulls discovered by researchers has been confirmed as Homo erectus following a comparison with known Homo erectus fossils from Java's Sumbungmacan site. Elsewhere, fossils of a large extinct mammal similar to modern elephants were found. The Stegoden is understood to reach up to 13 feet at the shoulder and weigh more than 10 tonnes. An array of different deer remains were also uncovered, including bones and teeth from different species.
