How Did Homo antecessor Survive in Europe Between 1.2 and 0.8 Million Years Ago, and Why Did They Eventually Go Extinct? — Here’s What Scientists Believe

Most of the hominin fossils were found in Africa, which is also why it was labelled to be the likely origin of the homo genus species. However, humans did not stay on this continent. There were times when they were forced to migrate to other places, like Europe and Asia, in order to survive and find more resources or livable habitats.

About 1.2 million years ago, a hominin species was believed to have reached Europe and survived there until 800,000 years ago, the Homo antecessor. They are one of the earliest known human groups on this continent, but how exactly did they survive in this environment, and what drove their extinction? Let’s dive deep into their story.

How They Might Have Lived — Diet, Butchery, and Tools

One of the most crucial clues about how Homo antecessor could have lived in Europe was their fossils and the animal bones around it. These carcasses contained marks thought to be from processing and butchering. This meant that Homo antecessor was able to use some basic stone tools to cut and scrape the meat out of a scavenged or hunted animal.

At the Gran Dolina site in Spain, archaeologists found bones with cut marks from bison, deer, horse, and other animals, which all showed signs of being processed. These extinct animals, at the time, were often larger and more powerful than their modern counterparts.

In other words, it could mean that Homo antecessor was capable of hunting these huge creatures. It would have taken a cooperative effort, mastery of hunting strategies, and utilization of stone tools. However, since they only had basic stone tools, it is most likely that they compensated for this by working together to hunt, or if they couldn’t, then they just gathered or scavenged the meat instead of hunting it themselves.

They were also believed to have a mixed diet of both meat and plants. Since they could use basic stone tools to cut, they probably were able to obtain tougher plant materials like underground roots and other food sources available in their environment. The microwear analysis of Homo antecessor teeth also revealed that they likely often ate tough foods such as raw meat and tubers.

Read more: Australian Museum

Surviving Europe’s Environment — Climate, Habitat, and Adaptation

Homo antecessor - the Forgotten Europeans ~ with MARIO MODESTO-MATA

Europe, back then, around 1.2 million years ago, was a completely different place than it is today. Climate changes made surviving tougher, as ice ages came and went, and together with it is the expansion and reduction of habitable environments. This meant that Homo antecessor had to survive an ever-changing world and adapt to it in order to thrive.

They likely occupied environments such as open woodlands or high grasslands, and a mixture of different other habitats. The animal species found in their archaeological sites also support these theories, as those creatures also lived in varied places. Because of climate change and the natural seasons, the habitats in Europe were not stable, so Homo antecessor likely moved around, following the seasonal changes and vegetation.

It was also believed that for the earlier part of Homo antecessor’s existence in Europe, the environment only suffered mild glacial periods. But, around 1.1 million years ago, a severe and prolonged ice age occurred, which was thought to be one of the primary reasons for the extinction of other hominins that could have been living in the area already before the Homo antecessor, along with a few other factors.

Challenges They Faced — Competition, Climate Stress, and Isolation

Homo antecessor was able to survive in a tough European environment from 1.2 million years ago to about 800,000 years ago. However, they also likely faced challenges that made survival even harder, and factors that could have contributed to their eventual extinction as a species.

First, there could be a competition with other hominins that arrived in the area before them. Examples could be a certain type or ancestor of Homo erectus, which was a species thought to have existed for nearly 2 million years on Earth. If other homo lineages were able to adapt and evolve better survival strategies, more advanced tools, and higher population numbers, then Homo antecessor could be displaced or totally outcompeted.

But, experts think that earlier hominins were eradicated because of the severe glacial periods around 1.1 million years ago, giving a chance for Homo antecessor to be established on the continent.

Secondly, there are the climate changes that made different natural habitats of ancestors unlivable for certain periods. Ice ages, even the milder ones, could have made resources scarce and intensified the competition for them. If an environment could no longer support enough prey for the hominins or edible plant materials, then their population could dwindle down until they become isolated and fragmented.

This led to the third possible challenge, which was the separation of Homo antecessor groups, leading to smaller populations that were prone to inbreeding and even cannibalism. They are also more vulnerable to random events like biological diseases and environmental disasters. These factors could push them to the brink of extinction.

Read more: Smithsonian Magazine

Why They Likely Went Extinct — The Final Push

Homo Antecessor: Europe’s Earliest Humans | Ancient Human Documentary

Putting all the data together, and the logical sequence of events, the extinction of Homo antecessor around 800,000 years ago was likely caused by a multitude of interacting factors. One of the biggest possibilities is climate collapse. Europe could have become too cold too quickly for Homo antecessor to adapt, find enough food sources, and develop survival strategies.

Another possibility is gradual replacement, as new and probably more advanced human species arrive. Rather than other species arriving much later on, some scientific debate suggests they could have replaced the Homo antecessors in these environments instead. Homo antecessor could have been outcompeted by more adapted hominins such as Homo heidelbergensis, but there are also some theories that propose that they evolved directly into Homo heidelbergensis.

There are also large gaps in fossil evidence in Europe, which suggests that it could have been simply too harsh an environment for the archaic human species to thrive and survive in. This place may have been depopulated during the colder glacial periods, before being reoccupied later by a new hominin species.

Rather than any one of these factors, the extinction of Homo antecessor was likely a combination of them all. Their disappearance as a species could also not be instantaneous but rather gradual as different evolutionary pressures pile up to the point that they could not overcome them any longer.

Author's Final Thoughts

Homo antecessor was thought to be one of the earliest humans to be successfully established as a population in Europe. They survived in this tough environment from 1.2 million to 0.8 million years ago. The fact that they were able to last this long in a place that eradicated many other hominin populations is simply impressive.

Moreover, instead of being completely extinct, their lineage could have also just continued and evolved into a more adaptable group of hominins, such as Homo heidelbergensis. Whether they really went extinct at that time or evolved to be a different species, their story helps us see how fragile early human life can be, and what qualities could have allowed a hominin species to succeed where others could not.

Read next: How Did Homo ergaster Survive for Around 500,000 Years in Africa, and Why Did They Eventually Go Extinct? — Here’s What Scientists Discovered

References & Further Reading

Bermúdez de Castro, J. M., et al. (1997). A hominid from the lower Pleistocene of Atapuerca, Spain: possible ancestor to Neandertals and modern humans. Science. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.276.5317.1392

Welker, F., et al. (2020). The dental proteome of Homo antecessor. Nature. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-020-2153-8

Campaña, I., et al. (2016). New interpretation of the Gran Dolina–TD6 bearing Homo antecessor deposits through sedimentological analysis. Scientific Reports. https://www.nature.com/articles/srep34799

Saladié, P., et al. (2012). Intergroup cannibalism in the European Early Pleistocene: the range expansion and imbalance of power hypotheses. Journal of Human Evolution. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhevol.2012.07.004

Blain, H.-A., et al. (2013). Early Pleistocene palaeoenvironments at the time of the TD6 hominins (Gran Dolina, Atapuerca, Spain): an approach using herpetofaunal assemblages. Journal of Quaternary Science. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/jqs.2622

Blain, H.-A., et al. (2010). Sima del Elefante, Atapuerca (Spain): first hominin presence around 1.2 Ma and its palaeoenvironmental context. Quaternary Science Reviews. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S027737911000257X