Archaeologists Found Early Humans Mastered Spears 300,000 Years Ago — But Here’s Why No Other Species Developed Tools the Same Way

Archaeologists recently found out that early humans had developed projectile weapons such as spears about 300,000 years ago. These were not just simply tree branches, too; instead, they are well-honed, balanced, and carefully carved for throwing and hunting at a distance.

This is a discovery that shows how humans began developing their technology long before the modern human species, Homo sapiens, existed. However, have you ever thought why no other species has developed the same tool-making capability as us?

Because we are smart, but so are octopuses, dolphins, and many other animals. We began by using simple tools that are readily available in nature, but so are crows, elephants, sea otters, and even insects. So, is it just a matter of how intelligent our species is compared to them, or are there reasons we often overlook that make us unique as humans?

Early Human Spears Show Complex Thinking

In a place called Schöningen, Germany, scientists found that our ancestors used wooden spears to hunt animals about 300,000 years ago. For comparison, the estimated years the modern human species, or Homo sapiens, has walked on this planet were about 200,000 to 300,000 years.

This meant that early humans already possessed the ability to plan and strategize ahead to hunt. It also means they are not only capable of using tools found readily available in nature, but they also know how to make and hone them.

In one study, scientists found that humans could activate one part of their brain when making and using tools. This was a study comparing them to monkeys, but researchers discovered that the left side of the brain, where problem-solving and planning happen, is activated during the experiment.

In other words, casual reasoning ability, such as understanding how honing a wood into a pointy object could help it pierce through an animal, is deeply human. Complex and deeper cause and effect thinking might not be as prevalent in other species, which would hinder them from developing the same technology that ours have come to be over time and generations.

Read more: Wikipedia | New Scientists

Our Tool Skills Go Even Further Back

How Did Early Humans Make Stone Tools?

The wooden spears discovered were not the beginning of humans’ tool-making capabilities. Scientists have actually found earlier signs of this technological innovation. At Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania, researchers discovered bone tools that are 1.5 million years old.

These are tools made to butcher animals to easily consume them. In other words, these are intentionally created tools, and not just an accident that one of our ancestors grabbed from their surroundings. These findings describe one of humans’ most significant skills, their adaptability.

Unlike other animals that could use tools, like chimpanzees and sea otters, humans do not just stick to one tool for one purpose. Instead, they constantly innovate, improve their work, and pass it on to the next generation.

Other Animals Use Tools, But Differently

It is very important to recognize that it is not only humans who can use tools. Other species have been observed to utilize them too for their own survival. For example, chimpanzees will break tree branches to fish for termites inside their own nests. They were also seen to use rocks to break open some fruits and nuts.

Another would be the New Caledonian crows, which bend sticks into hooks that they can use to pull insects from the trees. In the oceans, marine life also knows how to use tools, such as the sea otters, who use rocks like hammers to break open clams.

So, the question remains: if other animals are smart enough to create and use tools, why have they not developed them the same way humans did? It is because we use cumulative inventive learning, where we create and improve the tools to make them more effective in making our lives easier, then pass them on to the next generation to further refine.

This is how we transitioned from spears to bows, and from wheels to modern machinery. The ability to build upon previous inventions is what separates our tool-making from other species. So, why did only humans learn how to both invent, pass on their tools and improve them?

Read more: WIRED

Why Only Humans Invent and Pass on Tools

What is Impossible in Evolution?

The answer to this question is not just because of the sheer intelligence of human beings compared to all other animal species. Rather, it is a mix of different factors that make us unique as humans.

First, and the most obvious one, is our larger and more complex brains. It allows us to imagine, plan, and think ahead. Another is the evolution of our specialized hands. Our wrists, thumbs, and fingers are all developed for precision and control. It helped us carve and chip at stones to make the ancient tools. On the other hand, chimpanzees have stronger hands, but they are used for climbing and lack the same fine control.

Another was our cultural sophistication and learning. Humans don’t generally start over with each new generation. Instead, they inherit the past generation’s knowledge and build upon it.

Lastly, is our social ability to cooperate. Hunting big animals with spears or other tools is usually a team effort, and this led us to learn how to communicate and eventually develop languages. One of the factors that contributed to making tools better. With a better ability to pass on knowledge through effective communication, our tools just become better and better over generations.

Author's Final Thoughts

One of the most important aspects of human evolution is our positive feedback loop. For instance, the creation of complex tools allowed ancient humans to hunt efficiently, making their diet better, thus allowing the development of larger brains. In turn, the larger brains enabled the species to innovate and improve upon the tools to make them more advanced and effective, continuing the cycle.

This reason, along with all the other ones described, is why the human story of tool-making is unique. A journey that started on stones and wooden spears, that now continues with rockets, AI, and robots.

Just another reminder and disclaimer before we end this article—this article is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional scientific advice and history. It is made from our own understanding of research, commentary, analysis, and knowledge.

Read next: Researchers Say Neanderthals Were Smarter Than We Thought — But Here’s Why They Still Went Extinct While We Survived

References & Further Reading

Leder, D., et al. (2023). The wooden artifacts from Schöningen’s Spear Horizon and their implications for complex tool behavior in hominins ~300,000 years ago. PNAS. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2320484121

Biro, D., & Tsuda, S. (2012). Tool use as adaptation. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B. https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rstb.2012.0408

Bandini, E., Tennie, C. (2020). Exploring the role of individual learning in animal tool-use. PMC. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7521350/

Lonsdorf, E. V., et al. (2022). Behavioral and cognitive perspectives on the evolution of tool use in primates and hominins. Trends in Ecology & Evolution. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S235215462200050X