ScienceDaily
Your source for the latest research news
Follow Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Subscribe RSS Feeds Newsletters
New:
  • Lost Medieval Chapel: Cult of Disemboweled Saint
  • Old-Growth Trees More Drought Tolerant
  • Early Life Experiences: Long-Lasting Impact ...
  • Nanomaterial Cuts Fat in Specific Parts of Body
  • 3D Printing Metal-Plastic Composite Structures
  • 2,000-Year-Old Shipwreck: Complex Trade
  • Mammoth Problem With Extinction Timeline
  • Ancient DNA: Origin Story of Ashkenazi Jews
  • Landslide Risk Remains Long After a Quake
  • Physicists Observe Wormhole Dynamics
advertisement
Follow all of ScienceDaily's latest research news and top science headlines!
Science News
from research organizations

1

2

Neandertals Sophisticated And Fearless Hunters, New Analysis Shows

Date:
May 14, 2009
Source:
Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research
Summary:
Neandertals, the supposedly 'stupid' cousins of modern humans, were capable of capturing the most impressive animals. This indicates that Neandertals were anything but dim. An analysis of their daily forays for food revealed that the hunting was very knowledge intensive.
Share:
FULL STORY

Neandertals, the 'stupid' cousins of modern humans were capable of capturing the most impressive animals. This indicates that Neandertals were anything but dim. Dutch researcher Gerrit Dusseldorp analysed their daily forays for food to gain insights into the complex behaviour of the Neandertal. His analysis revealed that the hunting was very knowledge intensive.

advertisement

Although it is now clear that Neandertals were hunters and not scavengers, their exact hunting methods are still something of a mystery. Dusseldorp investigated just how sophisticated the Neandertals' hunting methods really were. His analysis of two archaeological sites revealed that Neandertals in warm forested areas preferred to hunt solitary game but that in colder, less forested areas they preferred to hunt the more difficult to capture herding animals.

The Neandertals were not easily intimidated by their game. Rhinoceroses, bisons and even predators such as the brown bear were all on their menu. Dusseldorp established that just as for modern humans, the environment and the availability of food determined the choice of prey and the hunting method adopted. If the circumstances allowed it, Neandertals lived in large groups and even the most attractive and difficult to catch prey were within their reach.

Coordination and communication

Although herding animals are difficult to surprise and isolate, many such game lived on the open steppes. This large supply attracted large groups of Neandertals. That the Neandertals were capable of hunting down such elusive game demonstrates that they had good coordination skills and could communicate well with each other.

Each prey has a specific cost-benefit scenario. For example, game that are more difficult to catch yield more calories and have a more usable, thick fleece. Dusseldorp used these data to examine the Neandertal's preferences. He also analysed the prey of hyenas in the same manner. Hyenas were important competitors of Neandertals as they had a similar dietary pattern.

Dusseldorp demonstrated that Neandertals, thanks to their intelligence, even surpassed hyenas at capturing the strongest game. All things being considered, the Neandertals were skilled and highly intelligent hunters. So the idea that Neandertals were brute musclemen can be dismissed.

This study was part of NWO project "Thoughtful Hunters? The Archaeology of Neandertal Communication and Cognition." Dusseldorp is continuing his research with a postdoc position in Johannesburg. There he shall focus on the modern humans that evolved in Africa.

make a difference: sponsored opportunity

Story Source:

Materials provided by Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.


Cite This Page:

  • MLA
  • APA
  • Chicago
Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research. "Neandertals Sophisticated And Fearless Hunters, New Analysis Shows." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 14 May 2009. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/05/090514084115.htm>.
Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research. (2009, May 14). Neandertals Sophisticated And Fearless Hunters, New Analysis Shows. ScienceDaily. Retrieved December 4, 2022 from www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/05/090514084115.htm
Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research. "Neandertals Sophisticated And Fearless Hunters, New Analysis Shows." ScienceDaily. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/05/090514084115.htm (accessed December 4, 2022).

  • RELATED TOPICS
    • Fossils & Ruins
      • Early Humans
      • Anthropology
      • Cultures
      • Tyrannosaurus Rex
      • Archaeology
advertisement

  • RELATED TERMS
    • Dodo and related birds
    • Human evolution
    • Great Ape language
    • Sponge
    • Archaeology
    • Timeline of human evolution
    • Homo erectus
    • Evolution of the eye
advertisement

  Print   Email   Share

advertisement

1

2

3

4

5
Most Popular
this week

PLANTS & ANIMALS
Put the Kettle On! How Black Tea (and Other Favorites) May Help Your Health Later in Life
Honey Bee Life Spans Are 50 Percent Shorter Today Than They Were 50 Years Ago
525-Million-Year-Old Fossil Defies Textbook Explanation for Brain Evolution
EARTH & CLIMATE
Fossil Overturns More Than a Century of Knowledge About the Origin of Modern Birds
New Catalyst Could Be Key for Hydrogen Economy
Earth Might Be Experiencing 7th Mass Extinction, Not 6th
FOSSILS & RUINS
Oldest Evidence of the Controlled Use of Fire to Cook Food, Researchers Report
Human Evolution Wasn't Just the Sheet Music, but How It Was Played
World's Oldest Meal Helps Unravel Mystery of Our Earliest Animal Ancestors
advertisement

Strange & Offbeat
 

PLANTS & ANIMALS
A Self-Powered Ingestible Sensor Opens New Avenues for Gut Research
Ranches of the Future Could Be Home to Cows Wearing Smart-Watch-Style Sensors Powered by Their Movements
Flowers Show Their True Colors
EARTH & CLIMATE
Fossil Overturns More Than a Century of Knowledge About the Origin of Modern Birds
A Waste Windfall: New Process Shows Promise Turning Plastic Trash Into Pharmaceuticals
DNA Sequence Enhances Understanding Origins of Jaws
FOSSILS & RUINS
Mammoth Problem With Extinction Timeline
New Quantum Computing Feat Is a Modern Twist on a 150-Year-Old Thought Experiment
Ancient Superpredator Got Big by Front-Loading Its Growth in Its Youth
Explore More
from ScienceDaily

RELATED STORIES

Pleistocene Sediment DNA from Denisova Cave
June 23, 2021 — Researchers have analyzed DNA from 728 sediment samples from Denisova Cave. Their study provides unprecedented detail about the occupation of the site by both archaic and modern humans over 300,000 ...
Neandertal Gene Variants Both Increase and Decrease the Risk for Severe COVID-19
Feb. 16, 2021 — Last year, researchers showed that a major genetic risk factor for severe COVID-19 is inherited from Neandertals. Now the same researchers show that Neandertals also contributed a protective variant. ...
Y Chromosomes of Neanderthals and Denisovans Now Sequenced
Sep. 24, 2020 — An international research team led by Martin Petr and Janet Kelso of the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany, has determined Y chromosome sequences of three ...
Genomes of Five Late Neandertals Provide Insights Into Neandertal Population History
Mar. 21, 2018 — Researchers have sequenced the genomes of five Neandertals that lived between 39,000 and 47,000 years ago. These late Neandertals are all more closely related to the Neandertals that contributed DNA ...
advertisement


SD
  • SD
    • Home Page
    • Top Science News
    • Latest News
  • Home
    • Home Page
    • Top Science News
    • Latest News
  • Health
    • View all the latest top news in the health sciences,
      or browse the topics below:
      Health & Medicine
      • Allergy
      • Alternative Medicine
      • Birth Control
      • Cancer
      • Diabetes
      • Diseases
      • Heart Disease
      • HIV and AIDS
      • Obesity
      • Stem Cells
      • ... more topics
      Mind & Brain
      • ADD and ADHD
      • Addiction
      • Alzheimer's
      • Autism
      • Depression
      • Headaches
      • Intelligence
      • Psychology
      • Relationships
      • Schizophrenia
      • ... more topics
      Living Well
      • Parenting
      • Pregnancy
      • Sexual Health
      • Skin Care
      • Men's Health
      • Women's Health
      • Nutrition
      • Diet and Weight Loss
      • Fitness
      • Healthy Aging
      • ... more topics
  • Tech
    • View all the latest top news in the physical sciences & technology,
      or browse the topics below:
      Matter & Energy
      • Aviation
      • Chemistry
      • Electronics
      • Fossil Fuels
      • Nanotechnology
      • Physics
      • Quantum Physics
      • Solar Energy
      • Technology
      • Wind Energy
      • ... more topics
      Space & Time
      • Astronomy
      • Black Holes
      • Dark Matter
      • Extrasolar Planets
      • Mars
      • Moon
      • Solar System
      • Space Telescopes
      • Stars
      • Sun
      • ... more topics
      Computers & Math
      • Artificial Intelligence
      • Communications
      • Computer Science
      • Hacking
      • Mathematics
      • Quantum Computers
      • Robotics
      • Software
      • Video Games
      • Virtual Reality
      • ... more topics
  • Enviro
    • View all the latest top news in the environmental sciences,
      or browse the topics below:
      Plants & Animals
      • Agriculture and Food
      • Animals
      • Biology
      • Biotechnology
      • Endangered Animals
      • Extinction
      • Genetically Modified
      • Microbes and More
      • New Species
      • Zoology
      • ... more topics
      Earth & Climate
      • Climate
      • Earthquakes
      • Environment
      • Geography
      • Geology
      • Global Warming
      • Hurricanes
      • Ozone Holes
      • Pollution
      • Weather
      • ... more topics
      Fossils & Ruins
      • Ancient Civilizations
      • Anthropology
      • Archaeology
      • Dinosaurs
      • Early Humans
      • Early Mammals
      • Evolution
      • Lost Treasures
      • Origin of Life
      • Paleontology
      • ... more topics
  • Society
    • View all the latest top news in the social sciences & education,
      or browse the topics below:
      Science & Society
      • Arts & Culture
      • Consumerism
      • Economics
      • Political Science
      • Privacy Issues
      • Public Health
      • Racial Disparity
      • Religion
      • Sports
      • World Development
      • ... more topics
      Business & Industry
      • Biotechnology & Bioengineering
      • Computers & Internet
      • Energy & Resources
      • Engineering
      • Medical Technology
      • Pharmaceuticals
      • Transportation
      • ... more topics
      Education & Learning
      • Animal Learning & Intelligence
      • Creativity
      • Educational Psychology
      • Educational Technology
      • Infant & Preschool Learning
      • Learning Disorders
      • STEM Education
      • ... more topics
  • Quirky
    • Top News
    • Human Quirks
    • Odd Creatures
    • Bizarre Things
    • Weird World
Free Subscriptions

Get the latest science news with ScienceDaily's free email newsletters, updated daily and weekly. Or view hourly updated newsfeeds in your RSS reader:

  • Email Newsletters
  • RSS Feeds
Follow Us

Keep up to date with the latest news from ScienceDaily via social networks:

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
Have Feedback?

Tell us what you think of ScienceDaily -- we welcome both positive and negative comments. Have any problems using the site? Questions?

  • Leave Feedback
  • Contact Us
About This Site  |  Staff  |  Reviews  |  Contribute  |  Advertise  |  Privacy Policy  |  Editorial Policy  |  Terms of Use
Copyright 1995-2022 ScienceDaily or by other parties, where indicated. All rights controlled by their respective owners.
Content on this website is for information only. It is not intended to provide medical or other professional advice.
Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily, its staff, its contributors, or its partners.
Financial support for ScienceDaily comes from advertisements and referral programs, where indicated.
— CCPA: Do Not Sell My Information — GDPR: Privacy Settings —