Across Landscapes and Continents: Large-scale Movements of Hominins and Fauna during the Middle Pleistocene (SSHRC PDG)
Research Team
Yonatan Sahle, PhD, Pastory Bushozi, PhD, Denne Reed, PhD
Partner Organizations
- Department of Archaeological and Heritage Studies, University of Dar es Salaam
- National Museum of Tanzania
- Department of Anthropology, University of Texas at Austin
Across Landscapes and Continents: Large-scale Movements of Hominins and Fauna during the Middle Pleistocene (SSHRC PDG)
The Chibanian (formerly Middle Pleistocene, ca. 774–129 kilo annum [ka]) is increasingly recognized as a critical period in human evolution that witnessed the expansion of the brain and burgeoning regional hominin variation, with Neanderthal morphology dominating Europe and the emergence of anatomically modern humans in Africa around 300 ka. The newly designated species of Homo bodoensis — based on cranial remains from Bodo D’Ar in Ethiopia’s
Afar Region — was proposed as the direct ancestor of Homo sapiens that split from the most recent common ancestor (MRCA) of all large-brained hominins in the late Early Pleistocene. By investigating the palaeobiological, palaeoecological, and behavioural contexts of H.bodoensis, this project aims to establish the baseline for testing several possible scenarios for the emergence of modern humans. This project also aims to address the fact that human origins research in Africa is still deeply embedded in colonial/neo-colonial attitudes, despite ongoing efforts to build local capacity and decolonize the field. This includes the shift away from the solving the proverbial “Muddle in the Middle” by introducing the “Chibanian puzzle” and addressing and questioning hominin systematics in species classification and the development of a best practice model for decolonizing international collaboration, including building the capacity of partner museums in Africa in digital resource management of their collections.
2023 | Roksandic M, Radović P, Lindal J. (2023) The Complex picture of the Chibanian hominin record at the Crossroads of Europe and Asia. In: A Ruiz-Redondo, W Davies (Eds.), The Prehistoric Hunter-gatherers of South-Eastern Europe. Proceedings of the British Academy 258. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Pp. 36–59.
Bae, CJ, Aiello LC, Hawks J, Kaifu Y, Lindal J, Martinón-Torres M, Ni X, Posth C, Radović P, Reed D, Schroeder L, Schwartz JH, Silcox MT, Welker F, Wu XJ, Zanolli C, Roksandic M. (2023) Moving away from “the Muddle in the Middle” towards solving the Chibanian puzzle. Evolutionary Anthropology 33(1), e22011. https://doi.org/10.1002/evan.22011
Bae CJ, Radović P, Wu X-J, Figueiredo E, Smith GF, Roksandic M. (2023) Placing taxonomic nomenclatural stability above ethical concerns ignores societal norms. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 199(1), 5–6. https://doi.org/10.1093/zoolinnean/zlad061
Figueiredo E, Bae CJ, Radović P, Wu X-J, Roksandic M, Smith GF. (2023) Governance of biological nomenclature: mechanisms to address the needs of end-users are available and not onerous to implement. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 199(1), 3–4. https://doi.org/10.1093/zoolinnean/zlad056
Roksandic M, Musiba C, Radović P, Lindal J, Wu X-J, Figueiredo E, Smith GF, Roksandic I, Bae CJ. (2023) Change in biological nomenclature is overdue and possible. Nature Ecology and Evolution 7(8), 1166–1167. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-023-02104-x
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2022 | Roksandic M, Radović P, Wu X-J, Bae CJ. (2022) Homo bodoensis and why it matters. Evolutionary Anthropology 31(5), 240–244. https://doi.org/10.1002/evan.21954
Roksandic M, Radović P, Wu X-J, Bae CJ. (2022) Resolving the “Muddle in the Middle”: the case for Homo bodoensis sp. nov. Evolutionary Anthropology 31(1), 20–29. https://doi.org/10.1002/evan.21929
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