Homo erectus became extinct because it was lazy

Homo erectus appeared on Earth two million years ago. Scientists believe it went extinct about 50,000 to 100,000 years ago. But in the poron comparison with other hominins, such as Neanderthals, this species was too lazy and reluctant to adapt to a changing environment.

Archaeological studies of ancient ancestral populationsow man conducted by scientistsow from the Australian National University (ANU) have revealed that Homo erectus applied strategies „least effort” to create tools and gather resourcesow. This, combined with the inability to adapt to a changing climate, likely played a key role in the extinction of the species.

– They don’t seem to really force themselves to do anything – said Dr. Ceri Shipton of the ANU School of Culture, History and Language, head of theowny author of publications thatora appeared on the „PLOS ONE”. – They were not explorers whoothers looked beyond the horizon. They did not have the curiosity that we have – he added.

ANU archaeologists have analyzed thousands of artifactsoIn found in 2014 during excavations at PoThe Arabian Peninsula near the present-day city of Saffaqah in Saudi Arabia. Sloth Homo erectus, according to Shipton, was evident in the way the species made stone tools and gathered resources.

– To make tools, Homo erectus used stones thatore were found aroundoĊ‚ encampments. The material was mostly of low quality, in porown comparison to what we see in the poMore recent tworcow stone tools. The excavation site contained a large stone of high. He was located a short distance from the encampment on a small hill. However, instead of entering the wzgorze, Homo erectus used the debrisoinore found in the vicinity of the encampment – Shipton said.

– When we looked at the rock on the wzgoThrow, we did not notice any traces on itoin activity. They knew it was there, but because they had enough suitable resourcesowokoĊ‚ encampment, they seemed to think: why bother with this? – added the researcher.

Such behavior is the opposite of tworcoin stone tools from poMore recent periodsow, including early Homo sapiens and Neanderthaloin, whichoThose who climbed the gorach to find a stone of good quality. They also often transported him over long distances.

Homo erectus was not only lazy, but also very conservative. Probki settlementsoin showed that the surrounding environment was changing, but he was doing exactly the same thing with the same tools – marked Shipton. – We did not notice the progression, and we found their tools near riverbeds, ktore are currently dry. I think that eventually the environment became too dry for them,” he added.

SourceoSource: Science Daily, photo. CC BY-SA 3.0/ Lillyundfreya/ Wikimedia Commons