Ancient Resilience: How Early Humans Thrived in Extreme Environments Over a Million Years Ago

The research, published in Nature Communications Earth & Environment, reveals it occurred earlier than previously assumed.

“We uncover how early humans — referred to as hominins — thrived in adverse conditions,” states lead author Dr. Julio Mercader Florín, PhD, a professor in both the Faculty of Arts and the Faculty of Science at the University of Calgary.

The interdisciplinary analysis conducted by researchers from UCalgary, the University of Manitoba, and 17 other institutions worldwide indicates that Homo erectus adapted at least 1.2 million years ago — well before the emergence of our species, Homo sapiens.

Mercader, who investigates human evolution, elaborates that the archaeological investigation was carried out at Olduvai Gorge, a UNESCO World Heritage location in Tanzania.

“Through archaeology, we observe that Homo erectus repeatedly returned to the same site over thousands of years,” he notes in an interview. “This is not merely a temporary camp.”

“The stratification of archaeological remnants and fossils indicates that a species was consistently targeting a specific location in the landscape for their activities.”

For instance, the archaeological evidence demonstrates that groups of Homo erectus continually returned to inhabit areas with freshwater resources like ponds and developed specialized stone tools.

Co-author Dr. Jed Kaplan, PhD, a Canada Research Chair in global systems modeling, mentions that he was able to reconstruct historical landscapes to simulate the East African region during that time.

“Factors such as extreme climate shifts leading to desertification would have posed significant survival challenges for hominins,” he states. “What we revealed in the study is that we actually found ample evidence of hominin activity under environmental conditions — including climate and vegetation — suggesting very hot and arid periods.”

“As a result, it alters our understanding of early hominins’ adaptability to extreme environments and shows that Homo erectus was more versatile than previously acknowledged.”

Kaplan, a professor in the Department of Earth, Energy and Environment in UCalgary’s Faculty of Science, points out that this has intriguing implications.

“It is well established that by the time modern humans appeared on the scene, approximately 200,000 to 300,000 years ago, we were highly adaptable,” he clarifies. “We not only spread across Africa, but also began to inhabit a vast array of diverse environments — ranging from the Arctic tundra to the Sahara desert, tropical rainforests, and everything in between.”

It has now become evident, he remarks, that our human ancestors were displaying their capability to thrive in a multitude of environments — including extremely harsh ones.

“That’s a fresh insight; quite remarkable,” Kaplan remarks.

Ultimately, he anticipates that scientists will be able to illustrate the overall adaptability of Homo erectus.

“These significant ancestors were adept not only at surviving in various environments from rainforests to deserts but also at constructing boats and navigating across ocean straits to reach different islands.”

It remains uncertain whether they possessed language or could communicate verbally, he adds, but they might have communicated in alternative ways to locate resources like water or materials for crafting tools or fire.

Kaplan emphasizes that the study is crucial as it aids in understanding who we are and our origins.

“This contributes to a deeper comprehension of our planet and humanity’s role within it,” he states.

Both researchers remark that the paper is significant as it united a broad array of experts — from archaeologists and biogeochemists to paleoclimate specialists — to produce groundbreaking research.

“It exemplifies how contemporary climate research functions,” Mercader notes. “This serves as a model for tackling both past and present climate science research.”