Foerster, Verena ORCID: 0000-0002-3480-5769, Asrat, Asfawossen ORCID: 0000-0002-6312-8082, Ramsey, Christopher Bronk, Brown, Erik T., Chapot, Melissa S., Deino, Alan, Duesing, Walter, Grove, Matthew, Hahn, Annette, Junginger, Annett ORCID: 0000-0003-3486-0888, Kaboth-Bahr, Stefanie, Lane, Christine S., Opitz, Stephan, Noren, Anders ORCID: 0000-0002-5604-1085, Roberts, Helen M., Stockhecke, Mona, Tiedemann, Ralph, Vidal, Celine M., Vogelsang, Ralf, Cohen, Andrew S., Lamb, Henry F., Schaebitz, Frank and Trauth, Martin H. (2022). Pleistocene climate variability in eastern Africa influenced hominin evolution. Nat. Geosci., 15 (10). S. 805 - 822. BERLIN: NATURE PORTFOLIO. ISSN 1752-0908

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Abstract

Despite more than half a century of hominin fossil discoveries in eastern Africa, the regional environmental context of hominin evolution and dispersal is not well established due to the lack of continuous palaeoenvironmental records from one of the proven habitats of early human populations, particularly for the Pleistocene epoch. Here we present a 620,000-year environmental record from Chew Bahir, southern Ethiopia, which is proximal to key fossil sites. Our record documents the potential influence of different episodes of climatic variability on hominin biological and cultural transformation. The appearance of high anatomical diversity in hominin groups coincides with long-lasting and relatively stable humid conditions from similar to 620,000 to 275,000 years bp (episodes 1-6), interrupted by several abrupt and extreme hydroclimate perturbations. A pattern of pronounced climatic cyclicity transformed habitats during episodes 7-9 (similar to 275,000-60,000 years bp), a crucial phase encompassing the gradual transition from Acheulean to Middle Stone Age technologies, the emergence of Homo sapiens in eastern Africa and key human social and cultural innovations. Those accumulative innovations plus the alignment of humid pulses between northeastern Africa and the eastern Mediterranean during high-frequency climate oscillations of episodes 10-12 (similar to 60,000-10,000 years bp) could have facilitated the global dispersal of H. sapiens.

Item Type: Journal Article
Creators:
CreatorsEmailORCIDORCID Put Code
Foerster, VerenaUNSPECIFIEDorcid.org/0000-0002-3480-5769UNSPECIFIED
Asrat, AsfawossenUNSPECIFIEDorcid.org/0000-0002-6312-8082UNSPECIFIED
Ramsey, Christopher BronkUNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIED
Brown, Erik T.UNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIED
Chapot, Melissa S.UNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIED
Deino, AlanUNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIED
Duesing, WalterUNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIED
Grove, MatthewUNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIED
Hahn, AnnetteUNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIED
Junginger, AnnettUNSPECIFIEDorcid.org/0000-0003-3486-0888UNSPECIFIED
Kaboth-Bahr, StefanieUNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIED
Lane, Christine S.UNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIED
Opitz, StephanUNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIED
Noren, AndersUNSPECIFIEDorcid.org/0000-0002-5604-1085UNSPECIFIED
Roberts, Helen M.UNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIED
Stockhecke, MonaUNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIED
Tiedemann, RalphUNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIED
Vidal, Celine M.UNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIED
Vogelsang, RalfUNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIED
Cohen, Andrew S.UNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIED
Lamb, Henry F.UNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIED
Schaebitz, FrankUNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIED
Trauth, Martin H.UNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIEDUNSPECIFIED
URN: urn:nbn:de:hbz:38-694872
DOI: 10.1038/s41561-022-01032-y
Journal or Publication Title: Nat. Geosci.
Volume: 15
Number: 10
Page Range: S. 805 - 822
Date: 2022
Publisher: NATURE PORTFOLIO
Place of Publication: BERLIN
ISSN: 1752-0908
Language: English
Faculty: Unspecified
Divisions: Unspecified
Subjects: no entry
Uncontrolled Keywords:
KeywordsLanguage
MIDDLE STONE-AGE; MODERN HUMANS; HOMO-SAPIENS; SCANNER DATA; CHRONOLOGY; DIVERSITY; CONTEXTS; ORIGINS; RECORD; AWASHMultiple languages
Geosciences, MultidisciplinaryMultiple languages
URI: http://kups.ub.uni-koeln.de/id/eprint/69487

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