Overview
- An international team led by Jean-Jacques Hublin reports in Nature a well-dated hominin assemblage from the Grotte à Hominidés near Casablanca.
- The fossils comprise a nearly complete adult lower jaw, an additional partial adult jaw, a child's jaw, several vertebrae, isolated teeth, and a femur marked by carnivore bites.
- Micro-CT studies of dental structures identify similarities and differences with Homo antecessor, indicating related but distinct African and European populations.
- The authors interpret the remains as strong candidates for populations near the last common ancestor of Homo sapiens, Neanderthals, and Denisovans.
- The findings shift attention to northwest Africa as a key region for early Homo evolution and extend the timeline well beyond the oldest known Homo sapiens fossils.