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Incredibly rare botanical event captured in amber

These entombed ancient sprouts pose intriguing questions for biologists.

The rare sight of 40 million-year-old seeds sprouting from a pinecone fossil has been found immortalised in amber.

This unusual method of development – called precocious germination – isn’t common among plants in general and is almost unheard of in pines. The pinecone fossil provides the first evidence of the trait’s extraordinary age.

“Crucial to the development of all plants, seed germination typically occurs in the ground after a seed has fallen,” says palaeobotany expert George Poinar Jnr of Oregon State University, US.

“We tend to associate viviparity – embryonic development while still inside the parent – with animals, and forget that it does sometimes occur in plants.”

Precocious germination

Precocious germination mostly occurs in angiosperms, which are flowering plants like apples and oranges that make up most of the fruit that we eat. Angiosperms usually have seeds that are enclosed in fruit. However, pines are a different type of plant – gymnosperms.

Gymnosperms such as conifers produce “naked” seeds that aren’t enclosed in fruit and the embryo is dormant, where the seed won’t germinate until it is in the perfect conditions.

“Seed germination in fruits is fairly common in plants that lack seed dormancy, like tomatoes, peppers and grapefruit, and it happens for a variety of reasons,” explains Poinar. “But it’s rare in gymnosperms.”

This makes precocious germination in gymnosperms incredibly rare – so rare, in fact, that Poiner says there has only been one description of this naturally occurring in literature, back in 1965.

“That’s part of what makes this discovery so intriguing, even beyond that it’s the first fossil record of plant viviparity involving seed germination,” he says.

 “I find it fascinating that the seeds in this small pinecone could start to germinate inside the cone and the sprouts could grow out so far before they perished in the resin.”

The fossil is that of the extinct pine species Pinus cembrifolia, but pines in general aren’t often found preserved in Baltic amber. When they are, they are highly prized amongst collectors because the cone scales are so well-preserved they appear life-like.

Regardless, why these seeds decided to grow inside the cone is still somewhat of a mystery.

“In the case of seed viviparity in this fossil, the seeds produced embryonic stems that are quite evident in the amber,” explains Poiner.

 “Whether those stems, known as hypocotyls, appeared before the cone became encased in amber is unclear. However, based on their position, it appears that some growth, if not most, occurred after the pinecone fell into the resin.

“Often some activity occurs after creatures are entombed in resin, such as entrapped insects depositing eggs. Also, insect parasites sometimes flee their hosts into the resin after the latter become trapped. In the case of the pine cone, the cuticle covering the exposed portions of the shoots could have protected them from rapid entrance of the resin’s natural fixatives.”

Pinecone fossil hints at past environment

Ancient plants preserved in amber give hints about the environment because they show the anatomy and behavior of plants in high detail, esecpially when seen at such an early stage of development.

Viviparity in other living gymnosperms suggests this trait could be linked to winter frosts. This would suggest that the ancient Baltic amber forests had a humid, warm-temperate environment with some light frosts that allowed the pine seeds to germinate.

“This is the first fossil record of seed viviparity in plants, but this condition probably occurred quite a bit earlier than this Eocene record,” says Poinar.

“There’s no reason why vegetative viviparity couldn’t have occurred hundreds of millions of years ago in ancient spore-bearing plants like ferns and lycopods.”

The pinecone fossil was descibed in a study published in Historical Biology.

https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/palaeontology/pinecone-fossil-reveals-rare-botanical-feat/

 

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Bison archaeologists uncover 1,000-year-old rock carvings

Ancient archaeological find in Canada uncovered by wallowing bison.

Plains bison bull. Credit: Colleen Gara/Getty images

Even bison make great archaeologists. Literally.

Roaming bison in Canada’s Wanuskewin Heritage Park have uncovered 1,000-year-old petroglyphs – rock carvings – and the tool used to carve them, revealing the practices of ancient peoples in North America.

The heritage park is situated on the historic lands of the Dakota First Nation, and Northern Plains Indigenous Peoples, adjacent to the South Saskatchewan River.

“The discovery of these petroglyphs is a testament to just how sacred and important this land is,” says Darlene Brander, CEO of Wanuskewin Heritage Park. “The individual who made these petroglyphs was actually carving their legacy into the rock many years ago.”

Discovered by bison

The clever Saskatchewan bison were reintroduced to the park after more than 150 years, and their normal activity – including “wallowing” by rolling around in the grass to create dust pits – uncovered an embedded boulder that turned out to be a petroglyph.

Upon further inspection, (human) archaeologists found a stone knife that was used to carve the drawing.

“There’s no question about the association,” explains Dr Earnie Walker, chief archaeologist and park co-founder. “I measured the width of the cutting edge and it’s exactly the same width as the groove on the rock. Whoever did that carving almost left a business card behind.”

Petroglyph at Wanuskewin Heritage Park Canada. Credit: Wanuskewin Heritage Park

What do the petroglyphs show?

After the bison had made their discovery, Walker and team uncovered three more petroglyphs in the area, all of different shapes and sizes. Interestingly, one of them bore the scratched marks of a ribstone, which is found in Hoofprint tradition rock art and is associated with bison hunts.

“The lines on the boulder mimicked the ribs of a bison. In the middle of it, there was a little horned figure – a spirit figure with a triangular head with horns and an oblong body and a tail that went to the crack,” says Walker.

“I was trying not to have a heart attack. If the bison hadn’t been here, we wouldn’t have been here.”

Petroglyph. Wanuskewin Heritage Park.P Wanuskewin Heritage Park

The tool was also found to be in the direct trajectory of a bison jump – a rocky formation that indigenous peoples used to hunt bison by driving them off a cliff.

“The migratory bison hunting populations in pre-contact history followed bison herds and never carried a lot of items. But Wanuskewin has everything one would expect to find in a pre-contact culture on the northern plains,” says Walker.

“It has bison jumps and massive campsites that we’ve been excavating. Now it has rock art. That’s exceptional and tangible evidence of pre-contact culture. We think that it’s so exceptional that it’s worthy of the designation [as a UNESCO heritage site].”

The collection of petroglyphs was estimated to be between 300-1,800 years old, but were most likely to be around 1,000 years old based on other historic events.

The rarest of finds

It is extremely rare to find multiple petroglyphs, and even more extraordinary to find a tool nearby – but, we must admit, not quite as extraordinary as the fact that it was the bison who discovered them.

Had the bison not been reintroduced following their near-extinction in the 1970s – primarily due to overhunting – the ancient artifacts may never have been found.

Credit: Wanuskewin Heritage Park

 

“We have been so fortunate over the years to have had these wondrous stories emerge that we are able to share with the community,” says Brander. “Today, it is our duty to share this story as our call to reconciliation by shining a light on the distinct and beautiful cultures of the Northern Plains People.”

If you or another bison stumbles across a fossil or relic, here is a handy guide on what you can do to practice responsible archeology.

https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/archaeology/bison-archaeologists-uncover-1000-year-old-rock-carvings/

 

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Roman mosaic and villa complex found in Rutland farmer's field

A Roman villa containing a rare mosaic that depicts scenes from Homer's Iliad has been found beneath a farmer's field.

The mosaic, found in Rutland, has been described as the first example of its kind in the UK.

It was discovered by the landowner's son and investigated by archaeologists from the University of Leicester.

Historic England described the mosaic as "one of the most remarkable and significant... ever found in Britain".

The mosaic and surrounding villa complex have now been protected as a Scheduled Monument by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) on the advice of Historic England.

The complex is thought to have been occupied by a wealthy individual from the late Roman period.

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The earliest Eurasian decorated jewellery

A mammoth-bone pendant that goes back more than 40,000 years.

In 2010, archaeologist Mikołaj Urbanowski found an ornately decorated pendant made from a mammoth bone in Poland’s Stajnia Cave. Working with colleagues, Urbanowski has now discovered the age of this ancient piece of jewellery – around 41,500 years.

This makes it the earliest known piece of decorated jewellery in Eurasia, and ties it to the earliest arrivals of Homo sapiens in Europe.

The pendant, which was found next to an awl, has 50 puncture marks in an irregular looping shape, and two holes. In their paper, published in Scientific Reports, the authors suggest that these holes could represent a hunting tally.

“This piece of jewellery shows the great creativity and extraordinary manual skills of members of the group of Homo sapiens that occupied the site,” says co-author Wioletta Nowaczewska of Wrocław University, Poland.

“The thickness of the plate is about 3.7 millimetres, showing an astonishing precision on carving the punctures and the two holes for wearing it.”

The researchers used radiocarbon dating to figure out the pendant’s age, which was pinpointed at 41,500 years.

“Determining the exact age of this jewellery was fundamental for its cultural attribution, and we are thrilled with the result,” says lead author Sahra Talamo, director of the BRAVHO radiocarbon lab at Bologna University, Italy.

“This work demonstrates that using the most recent methodological advances in the radiocarbon method enables us to minimise the amount of sampling and achieve highly precise dates with a very small error range.”

This mammoth-bone jewellery discovery has interesting implications for our understanding of early humans in Europe.

“The ages of the ivory pendant and the bone awl found at Stajnia Cave finally demonstrate that the dispersal of Homo sapiens in Poland took place as early as in Central and Western Europe,” says co-author Andrea Picin from the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Germany. “This remarkable result will change the perspective on how adaptable these early groups were.”

In their paper, the researchers reiterated the importance of radiocarbon dating to learn more about these Palaeolithic H. sapiens.

“If we want to seriously solve the debate on when mobiliary art emerged in Palaeolithic groups, we need to radiocarbon date these ornaments, especially those found during past fieldwork or in complex stratigraphic sequences,” says Talamo.

https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/archaeology/the-earliest-eurasian-decorated-jewellery/

 

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Ancient hominin walked like a human but climbed like an ape

New fossil vertebrae of Australopithecus sediba reveals how early hominins moved.

Early hominins used their upper limbs to climb like apes and their lower limbs to walk like humans, according to new fossil evidence.

In 2015, mining excavations in Malapa, South Africa, revealed fossil vertebrae trapped in cement-like rock called breccia. Analysis revealed the vertebrae to be two million years old, from the lower back of a female Australopithecus sediba, a relative of modern humans first discovered at the same site in 2008.

Together with previously discovered vertebrae, these fossils form one of the most complete lower backs in the early hominid fossil record, giving us insight into the movements of our ancient cousin.

 

“The lumbar region is critical to understanding the nature of bipedalism in our earliest ancestors and to understanding how well adapted they were to walking on two legs,” says lead author Scott Williams, a paleoanthropologist from New York University, US, and Wits University in South Africa.

“Associated series of lumbar vertebrae are extraordinarily rare in the hominin fossil record, with really only three comparable lower spines being known from the whole of the early African record.”

These vertebrae were therefore treated with utmost care. The risk of damage was reduced by scanning the delicate fossils with a micro-CT scanner, creating 3D virtual models of them which can be viewed here.

The vertebrae were then reunited with the rest of the spine, previously found at the site, belonging to a single female specimen nicknamed “Issa” (meaning protector in Swahili).

Other research based on Issa’s incomplete spine had hypothesised that A. sediba had a straight spine, like Neanderthals and other extinct early hominins, as opposed to the inwardly curved spine of modern humans which indicates strong adaptations to bipedalism.

Now, with a complete and well-preserved spine, the research team could see that Issa has a more curved spine than any other australopithecines yet discovered.

This shows that Issa’s species were adapted to walking on two legs, as the team reports in their paper in the journal eLife.

Co-author Gabrielle Russo of Stony Brook University in the US notes, however, that “while the presence of lordosis [curvature] and other features of the spine represent clear adaptations to walking on two legs, there are other features, such as the large and upward oriented transverse processes, that suggest powerful trunk musculature, perhaps for arboreal behaviours”.

In other words, Issa and her species were still climbers.

This means that A. sediba was a transitional form of ancient humans, existing in the space between when hominins spent their entire lives in the trees and when hominins swung down to the ground and began to walk on two legs full time.

Previous research has looked at the upper limbs, pelvis and lower limbs to gain insight into these transitionary adaptations.

“The spine ties this all together,” says palaeoanthropologist Cody Prang of Texas A&M, US, who was not involved in the study.

“In what manner these combinations of traits persisted in our ancient ancestors, including potential adaptations to both walking on the ground on two legs and climbing trees effectively, is perhaps one of the major outstanding questions in human origins.”

https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/palaeontology/ancient-hominin-shows-evolution-of-bipedalism/

 

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Big brain time: why ancient fish moved onto land

Researchers reveal that it was a smart move after all.

Why did fish decide to move out of the water and onto land 370 million years ago? New research from Flinders University reveals it was a brainy decision.

In a study, published in PeerJ, researchers used CT scanning to investigate the internal bones of an ancient Cladarosymblema narrienense fossil – a 330 million-year-old fish from the Carboniferous Period found in Queensland, and ancestor of the four-limbed vertebrate tetrapods – and found that it had a really smart brain, for a fish.

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Faroe Islands were settled 300 years before the Vikings arrived

Centuries-old faeces indicate previous human occupation of the North Atlantic islands.

The Faroe Islands, sitting between Iceland, Norway and the British Isles, were an important stepping stone for Viking exploration across the North Atlantic. It has long been accepted, based on archaeological evidence, that the Norse were the first to settle the Islands – but there have been niggling doubts, with several indirect lines of evidence suggesting that an existing human population was there to greet the Vikings when the first longships landed.

In new research published in Communications Earth & Environment, researchers have presented the first unequivocal evidence that the Vikings were not the first to settle the Faroes. Using a combination of faecal biomarkers and sedimentary ancient DNA, they have been able to date the earliest settlement to 500 CE, approximately 300 years before the Vikings adopted the sailing technology that saw them expand their territories across vast swathes of the global north.

Lead author Lorelei Curtin, from the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, USA, and colleagues drew evidence from sediment cores taken from the Eiðisvatn catchment, home to a major archaeological site that was once a Norse summer farm settlement known as Argisbrekka. From these cores, researchers were able to identify the presence of lipid molecules, called faecal biomarkers, that derive from excrement.

The Argisbrekka faecal biomarkers bear the distinct signature of an origin in sheep digestive tracts. All mammals of the Faroe Islands were originally introduced by humans, so this evidence of sheep poo is a clear indicator of human presence. By dating the sediments in which these markers were found, the researchers were able to shift the date of livestock arrival back several centuries.

“The initial appearance of sheep DNA and increased faecal biomarkers predates the first documented usage of the Argisbrekka site by the Norse by approximately 300 years,” the researchers write.

The team was able to further corroborate the new settlement date using next-generation DNA sequencing technology, which allowed them to compile a profile of the ancient DNA lingering in the sediment cores. Sampling across 11 different depths, they found increasing concentrations of both sheep and grass DNA coinciding with a disappearance of woody plants.

Where once this shift in vegetation was attributed to late Holocene climate change, it now appears that widespread grazing was the dominant driver of landscape transition from shrublands to grasslands and peatlands in the Faroes.

This new evidence validates long-held doubts surrounding the Norse-settlement narrative, which was based primarily on the dating of archaeological structures. The earliest structures on the Faroes date between 800 and 900 CE, consistent with the timing of the widespread Norse expansion to new territories in Iceland, Greenland and all the way to North America.

The current study approaches the question with novel methodology. 

“While the nature of archaeological records causes them to be temporally fragmentary, sedimentary archives provide continuous records of the environmental history of a landscape,” write the researchers.

The results have opened up the discussion regarding pre-existing lines of evidence that have consistently called the established timeline into question.

Many place names in the Faroes derive from Celtic words, and a number of Celtic grave markings have been identified across the Islands. Perhaps the most compelling evidence lies in the genetics of modern Faroese people – there is a strong asymmetry between paternal and maternal ancestry, with the paternal lineage dominantly Scandinavian, while the maternal lineage is primarily from the British Isles.

Although strongly suggestive of an existing population, none of this evidence is directly conclusive.

“By 800 CE, the Vikings were already active in the British Isles,” write the researchers. “They were already influenced by Celtic culture and could have brought wives from the British Isles to the Faroe Islands.”

But with the current research firmly establishing the existence of human populations on the Faroe Islands long before the Vikings had taken up sailing – generally believed to be between 750 and 820 CE – it now appears unlikely that these first settlers were Norse.

So, who were the first inhabitants? Unfortunately, that’s still a mystery. While genetic profiles, place names and grave markings might hint towards a Celtic population, the direct sedimentary DNA evidence can’t pin this down.

“The early Faroese settlers were not Norse, however the identity of these early North Atlantic explorers remains an open question,” assert the researchers.

https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/faroe-islands-settled-before-vikings/

 

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Well-preserved dinosaur embryo fossil has been discovered in China. Very interesting Twitter thread about it:

 

 

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A Buddhist temple from Gandharan period got discovered in Swat. Looks like a proper town

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Ancient mass migration transformed Britons' DNA

Scientists have uncovered evidence for a large-scale, prehistoric migration into Britain that may be linked to the spread of Celtic languages.

The mass-movement of people originated in continental Europe and occurred between 1,400 BC and 870 BC.

The discovery helps to explain the genetic make-up of many present-day people in Britain.

Around half the ancestry of later populations in England and Wales comes from these migrants.

It's unclear what caused the influx of people during the Middle to Late Bronze Age, but the migrants introduced new ritual practices to Britain.

The results, published in the peer-reviewed journal Nature, are based on DNA extracted from 793 ancient skeletons.

The study reveals that a gene allowing some people to digest raw milk increased rapidly in Britain during the Iron Age - 1,000 years before the same thing happened elsewhere in Northern Europe. It's an extraordinary example of natural selection for a genetic trait, and the reasons for its spread remain a mystery.

The researchers identified four skeletons at the archaeological sites of Cliffs End Farm and Margetts Pit in Kent that were either first-generation migrants from continental Europe, or their descendants.

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Roman-era 'Good Shepherd' ring found off Israel in ancient shipwreck

A Roman-era gold ring bearing an image used by early Christians to symbolise Jesus has been found by archaeologists off Israel's Mediterranean coast.

The Israel Antiquities Authority said the ring was set with a green gemstone carved with the figure of a shepherd boy carrying a sheep on his shoulders.

In the Bible, Jesus describes himself as the "Good Shepherd".

The ring was among a number of artefacts discovered in two shipwrecks near the ancient port of Caesarea.

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Edited December 31, 2021 by CaaC (John)

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https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-wales-59832069

Edited January 2, 2022 by CaaC (John)

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Egyptian pharaoh's mummy digitally unwrapped for first time

The mummified body of an ancient Egyptian pharaoh has been studied for the first time in millennia after being digitally "unwrapped".

The mummy of Amenhotep I, who ruled from 1525 to 1504 BC, was found at a site in Deir el-Bahari 140 years ago.

But archaeologists have refrained from opening it in order to preserve the exquisite face mask and bandages.

Computed tomography (CT) scans have now revealed previously unknown information about the pharaoh and his burial.

"We got to see the face of the king that has been wrapped for more than 3,000 years," Dr Sahar Saleem, professor of radiology at Cairo University's Faculty of Medicine and lead author of the study published in the journal Frontiers in Medicine, told the BBC.

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5 January 2022 / Imma Perfetto

Fossilised dinosaur egg shows embryo preparing to hatch like a bird

An exquisitely preserved oviraptorosaur embryo suggests modern birds’ pre-hatching behaviour originated with dinosaurs.

Researchers have announced the exceedingly rare discovery of a perfectly preserved fossilised dinosaur embryo.

The embryo – named “Baby Yingliang” – was preparing to hatch from its egg in a distinctive “tucking” posture, previously considered to be unique to birds and never seen before in dinosaurs. The research has been published in Cell.

The ancient animal is an oviraptorosaur – a group of feathered theropod dinosaurs closely related to birds that lived during the Late Cretaceous period 100–66 million years ago. Theropods were a sup-group of obligate bipedal dinosaur with hollow bones and three-toed limbs, which also included Tyrannosaurus rex.

This discovery suggests that the modern birds’ pre-hatching tucking behaviour could have evolved in dinosaur ancestors prior to the origin of birds.

Baby Yingliang is one of the most complete non-avian dinosaur embryos ever discovered, as – according to corresponding author Waisum Ma, of the University of Birmingham, UK – most fossilised non-avian dinosaur embryos are incomplete and have disarticulated skeletons.

“We were surprised to see this embryo beautifully preserved inside a dinosaur egg, lying in a bird-like posture,” says Ma. “This posture had not been recognised in non-avian dinosaurs before.”

A modern bird embryo in the tucking position has its head placed under the right wing to stabilise it while using the beak to break out of the shell. The process is controlled by the central nervous system and is critical for hatching success.

Baby Yingliang’s head is tucked between its arms and legs and its body is curled into a C-shape inside its egg. This has never been observed in articulated non-avian dinosaur embryos due to their scarcity.

The fossil was found in 2000 in Ganzhou, southern China, but ended up in storage and was largely forgotten until about 10 years later, when it was unearthed by museum staff during the construction of Yingliang Stone Nature History Museum.

“Museum staff identified them as dinosaur eggs and saw some bones on the broken cross section of one of the eggs,” says Dr Lida Xing, of China University of Geosciences.

The fossil was initially studied by scraping off part of the eggshell to expose the embryo within, however researchers say that they will continue to study it in more depth using various imaging techniques to gain insight into its internal anatomy, such as skull bones, and other body parts still covered in rock.

https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/fossilised-dinosaur-egg-shows-embryo-preparing-to-hatch-like-a-bird/

 

 

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Decoding the disappearance of bears and lions using ancient DNA

Australian researchers gain new insight into ancient extinctions.

Tens of thousands of years ago in the Pleistocene, North America was roamed by fearsome beasts, including ancient cave lions and grizzly bears. The lions went extinct, never to return, but the bears are still there in force. The history of these carnivores’ existence on the continent, however, is peppered with disappearances and reappearances in the archaeological record.

Now, a team of researchers from the University of Adelaide have found a changing climate may be behind the mysterious disappearance of ancient lions and bears from parts of North America for a thousand years or more prior to the last Ice Age.

The study, published in Molecular Ecology, sequenced DNA extracted from ancient bones of cave lions and bears found in North American and Eurasia to understand their past abundance and movements between continents.

“There’s a common perception that outside of mass extinctions or direct human interference, ecosystems tend to remain stable over thousands or even millions of years,” says study co-author Kieren Mitchell, from the University of Adelaide’s Australian Centre for DNA. “As illustrated by our study of the fossil record, that’s not necessarily the case.”

Mitchell says the bears went extinct multiple times on the continent before their reappearance.

“Previous research has shown that brown bears (or grizzly bears) disappeared from some parts of North America for thousands of years prior to the last Ice Age. They later reappeared, walking from Russia to Alaska across the Bering Land Bridge – possibly at the same time as people moved across the Bridge into North America too.

“But no-one knows exactly why they disappeared in the first place, which is why studying this event is important.”

The Bering Land Bridge is an intermittent causeway between Russia and North America that is ordinarily undersea, but has been exposed in past ice ages, following the rhythms of sea level rise and fall. It’s this crucial land bridge that brought megafauna like bears, elk and lions – as well as humans – onto the frigid continent.

A key finding of the new research is that cave lions from the same area also became extinct more than once – before their final extinction they had already disappeared and reappeared thousands of years later, following the same pattern as the bears. There is no evidence that people caused these temporary disappearances, nor were cold Ice Age conditions to blame.

“Instead, it looks like a smoking gun pointing to some kind of change in their ecosystem,” Mitchell says.

As it turns out, the timing of these bear and lion extinctions in parts of North America coincides with evidence of a widespread shift in vegetation in the region. The authors say warming temperatures prior to the last Ice Age may have changed the composition of plants, interrupting the flow of the food chain and denting the population of herbivores on which the bears and lions preyed.

As the Ice Age encroached, cooling temperatures may have reversed this change, making the area more hospitable for herbivores and their predators.

“Overall, these findings demonstrate just how changeable past ecosystems have been, and also how the abundance of different species can be very sensitive to changes in climate,” Mitchell says.

Lead author Alexander Salis agrees: “While many might think that species arrive in a region and stay put, we show that the past was much more dynamic, involving multiple waves of dispersal and local extinctions in this case.”

https://cosmosmagazine.com/nature/animals/grizzly-bear-cave-lion-dna/

 

Edited January 12, 2022 by CaaC (John)

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The earliest unequivocally modern human remains in Africa

There may be earlier remains of modern humans – but science is certain about these ones.

A quarter of a million years ago, the East African Rift zone was a fertile causeway, where ample rainfall collected in basins among the hills, and fertile soils were laced with ash from a series of active volcanoes. This region is also thought to be the birthplace of our species, Homo sapiens, based on a rich nexus of archaeological sites.

Now, scientists have dated a famous set of remains from the rift zone in Ethiopia, known as Omo I, firmly identifying them as the oldest modern human remains in eastern Africa, and the oldest unquestioned evidence of H. sapiens in the world.

“It’s probably no coincidence that our earliest ancestors lived in such a geologically active rift valley – it collected rainfall in lakes, providing fresh water and attracting animals, and served as a natural migration corridor stretching thousands of kilometres,” says Clive Oppenheimer, a volcanologist at Cambridge University, UK, who is attempting to date volcanic eruptions from the region at the time of our species’ origins.

“The volcanoes provided fantastic materials to make stone tools and from time to time we had to develop our cognitive skills when large eruptions transformed the landscape.”

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Mysterious lightning phenomenon recorded in ancient medieval text

Benedictine monk documented the still-mysterious wonder of ball lightning.

British researchers have uncovered what they believe to be the earliest written account in England of a bizarre – and poorly understood – phenomenon known as ‘ball lightning’, chronicled in a medieval text written by a Benedictine monk who lived just under 1000 years ago. 

What is ball lightning?

Usually associated with thunderstorms, ball lightning has been described as a bright spherical object, on average 25 centimetres across but sometimes reaching several metres in diameter.

The phenomenon has mystified humans for centuries, with the previous oldest written account having been found in a 1638 report, which described a ball of fire flying into a church, accompanied by a great peal of thunder.

Scientists don’t really understand what causes ball lightning, and have long been on the hunt for an explanation. One possible answer is that lightning striking the ground vaporises some of the minerals in the soil, which then, floating in the air, react with oxygen and release heat and light to produce an unearthly glow. This explanation seems supported by a 2014 study, which identified trace evidence of silicon, iron and calcium – all abundant in soil – in a flash of ball lightning.

Historical sleuthing uncovers bizarre weather report

Written by the 12th-century Benedictine monk Gervase, the account states that “a marvellous sign descended near London” on 7 June 1195. Gervase described a dense, dark cloud emitting a white substance that grew into a spherical shape, and from which a fiery globe fell towards the river.

The account was uncovered by the unlikely academic pairing of physicist Brian Tanner and historian Giles Gasper, both of Durham University. The team compared Gervase’s text with historic and modern reports of ball lightning and came to the same conclusion: this dramatic event in 1195 was likely the same phenomenon.

“Gervase’s description of a white substance coming out of the dark cloud, falling as a spinning fiery sphere and then having some horizontal motion is very similar to historic and contemporary descriptions of ball lightning,” says Tanner. 

“If Gervase is describing ball lightning, as we believe, then this would be the earliest account of this happening in England that has so far been discovered.”

Gasper says that, from a historian’s perspective, the account is convincing. Gervase recorded the dates and times of solar eclipses remarkably accurately and in vivid detail. 

“The main focus of Gervase’s writings was Christ Church Cathedral Priory in Canterbury,” says Gasper. “But he was also interested in natural phenomena, from celestial events and signs in the sky to floods, famine and earthquakes.”

The findings are published in the Royal Meteorological Society’s journal Weather.

https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/ancient-text-mysterious-lightning-phenomenon/

 

Edited January 28, 2022 by CaaC (John)
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Tyrants Aisle’ reveals ancient dinosaur footprints

‘72-million-year-old tracks found on a riverbank in Canada.

An Australian-led team of palaeontologists has discovered more than 100 dinosaur footprints in Canada, revealed as a riverbank eroded away.

The fossil footprints show that this boreal-forest-covered area in northern Alberta was once home to greater predators than today’s bears and cougars. 72 million years ago, at least four types of dinosaurs patrolled the ancient floodplains – including tyrannosaurs, earning the stretch of riverbank the nickname ‘Tyrants Aisle’.

“The most abundant tracks at Tyrants Aisle are those of hadrosaurs, which were large herbivorous dinosaurs that sometimes exceeded 12 metres in length and four tonnes in mass,” says Nathan Enriquez, a PhD student from the University of New England (UNE) and lead author of the paper published in PLOS ONE.

“The biggest of their footprints that we found measured 65cm long, suggesting the animal was 2.6 metres tall at the hips. They may have acted a bit like cows, grazing on low-growing vegetation and forming herds.”

Two of the species identified were meat-eaters, including tyrannosaurs that stood 2m tall – relatives of raptors.

“The best-preserved tyrannosaur track at the site measures almost 50cm in length and, based on the age of these rocks, was possibly produced by Albertosaurus sarcophagus, an earlier relative of T. rex,” Enriquez says.

But the tracks are disappearing fast. They are located across three different layers of rock on the banks of the Redwillow River, near the city of Grande Prairie in Alberta. They likely follow the margins of an ancient river system, but they are still being influenced by the water today. The river submerges the fossil site for much of the year and the rock is steadily eroding away.

“By the time we found the site, much information had already been lost,” Enriquez says. “It was important that we carefully document this site while it is still available to us.”

To preserve the data from the site for future work, Enriquez and team have made 3D models of the most significant footprints and trackways.

The study is a collaboration between UNE, the University of Alberta and the Philip J. Currie Dinosaur Museum in Canada, and the University of Bologna in Italy.

https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/palaeontology/tyrants-aisle-reveals-ancient-dinosaur-footprints/

 

 

 

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What did the megalodon look like?

New research casts the commonly believed shape of the ancient shark into question.

Credit: Phillip Sternes/DePaul/UCR

The megalodon – the giant shark that lived between 15 and 3.6 million years ago – has captured the imagination of thousands of people, and at least one filmmaker, over time.

But, while we know Otodus megalodon was huge, there’s not enough fossil evidence to confirm its shape.

And, according to new research in the journal Historical Biology, palaeontologists’ current guesses about the shape of megalodons are based on potentially incorrect assumptions.

“The cartilage in shark bodies doesn’t preserve well, so there are currently no scientific means to support or refute previous studies on Otodus megalodon body forms,” says Phillip Sternes, an organismal biologist at the University of California, Riverside, and lead author on the study.

Palaeontologists have previously modelled the megalodon’s shape on its modern relative, the great white shark. Megalodons are thought to be partially warm blooded, like great whites, and both belong to the order Lamniformes.

Previous researchers have used measurements from the other five warm-blooded lamniforms to figure out the fin size and shape of the megalodon. But there are cold-blooded lamniforms as well, and in this paper, the researchers ask if they should also have been examined.

The researchers compared the physical characteristics of the warm-blooded lamniforms to other sharks in the order. They found no characteristics that distinguished the warm-blooded sharks from the cold.

“Warm bloodedness does not make you a differently shaped shark,” summarises Sternes.

“I encourage others to explore ideas about its body shape, and to search for the ultimate treasure of a preserved megalodon fossil. Meanwhile, this result clears up some confusion about previous findings and opens the door to other ideas once again.”  

The researchers conclude that they still don’t have a clear understanding of the shape of the megalodon. While only teeth and vertebrae can be found, it will be difficult to confirm what the megalodon looked like.

“All previously proposed body forms of Otodus megalodon should be regarded as speculations from the scientific standpoint,” says Sternes.

Co-author Professor Kenshu Shimada, a palaeobiologist at DePaul University, US, says that while the study may appear to be a step backward in science, “the continued mystery makes palaeontology – the study of prehistoric life – a fascinating and exciting scientific field.

“The fact that we still don’t know exactly how Otodus megalodon looked keeps our imagination going.

“This is exactly why the science of palaeontology continues to be an exciting academic field. We’ll continue looking for more clues in the fossil record.”

https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/palaeontology/megalodon-shape-questioned/

 

Edited February 8, 2022 by CaaC (John)
Spacing correction

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Dinosaurs may have caught colds

New study reveals first evidence of a respiratory infection in a dinosaur.

Dinosaurs may have suffered through sniffles and sore throats in much the same way we do, according to new international research.

The study, published in Scientific Reports, examined the fossilised remains of a young diplodocid – a large, long-necked herbivorous sauropod – and found the first evidence of a respiratory infection in a dinosaur.

The diplodocid, known as MOR 7029, was discovered in 1990 in southwest Montana, USA, and dates back approximately 150 million years to the Late Jurassic Period. Looking at three bones from MOR 7029’s neck, researchers found unusual bony protrusions in areas that would have been attached to air-filled structures known as air sacs. These sacs would have connected to MOR 7029’s lungs, forming part of the dinosaur’s respiratory system.

Based on the location, the researchers surmised that these odd bony lumps formed in response to an infection in MOR 7029’s air sacs, with then spread into its neck bones. With a neck reaching more than three metres in length, this would have been a ripper of a sore throat.

The likely culprit behind the illness was a fungal infection similar to aspergillosis, a common respiratory illness that affects modern birds and reptiles and is known to occasionally lead to bone infections. If this modern-day analogue is anything to go by, MOR 7029 likely felt wretched, potentially suffering pneumonia-like symptoms: weight loss, coughing, fever and breathing difficulties.

The bony lumps may even be evidence of the diplodocid’s demise. Modern-day aspergillosis can be fatal in birds if left untreated, and the researchers believe MOR 7029 may ultimately have died of the infection recorded in its bones.

Aside from painting a sad picture of the death of a dinosaur, this new research adds to the rapidly advancing field of palaeopathology.

The discipline relies on bone abnormalities to reconstruct the behaviour, physiology and life histories of extinct fauna. Dinosaur osteology – the study of dinosaur bone formation – is increasingly helping to reveal the nature of many overlying tissues, fleshing out the limited reconstruction we can derive from a dinosaur’s skeletal anatomy alone.

In much the same way that dinosaur trackways can tell us about behaviours such as predator-prey interactions, and preserved nest sites can tell us about parental care and incubation practices, bones can record many details of a dinosaur’s life – they are a logbook of growth, damage, healing, ageing and disease. By tuning in to these finer details, we can paint a much more vivid picture of the animal and life it lived.

The record of palaeopathology in non-avian dinosaurs is limited, but researchers do know that disorders such as arthritis, osteomyelitis and vascular parasites were present, suggesting that dinosaurs had to put up with the same aches, pains and niggles as we do today.

As well as enriching our picture of ancient life, paleopathology can play an important role in modern pathology. Every advance in the growing field helps to pinpoint causation and trace the evolutionary history of diseases, allowing us to better understand and fight them.

https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/palaeontology/dinosaurs-may-have-caught-colds/

 

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Roman vibe: let’s get this potty started

Ancient urns from Sicily turn out to be old toilets; the proof is in the parasite.

Storage jar or long-abandoned lavatory? That, for some reason, is the question archaeologists from the University of Cambridge, UK, and the University of British Columbia (UBC), Canada, sought to answer while studying an ancient Sicilian villa site.

Now, according to a new paper published last week in the Journal of Archaeological Science Reports, they’ve solved this smelly mystery.

As it turns out, a conical jar found at the site – found widely across the Roman empire and long thought to have stored unidentified objects or resources – was actually an ancient Roman toilet. 

“Conical pots of this type have been recognised quite widely in the Roman Empire and in the absence of other evidence they have often been called storage jars,” says Roger Wilson, a professor in UBC’s Department of Classical, Near Eastern and Religious Studies, who directs the archaeological project in Sicily. 

But Wilson says these pots were often found suspiciously close to public latrines, leading archaeologists to wonder exactly what treasures had been contained within.

“The discovery of many in or near public latrines had led to a suggestion that they might have been used as chamber pots, but until now proof has been lacking,” says Wilson.

To decode the pots’ long-disappeared contents, Cambridge archaeologists analysed a “crusty material” (yuck) formed on the inside surface of a pot found in the bathing complex at the site. Using microscopy, a team from the Ancient Parasite Laboratory confirmed the present of whipworm eggs – a human intestinal parasite.

“It was incredibly exciting to find the eggs of these parasitic worms 1,500 years after they’d been deposited,” says co-author Tianyi Wang, of Cambridge, who took part in the microscopy work.

Whipworms are human parasites, around five centimetres long, that live on the lining of our intestines. Their eggs would have mixed in with human faeces, and built up as residue over time with continuous use.

“We found that the parasite eggs became entrapped within the layers of minerals that formed on the pot surface, so preserving them for centuries,” says co-author Sophie Rabinow, also of the Cambridge team.

This is the first time parasite eggs have been identified from concretions inside a Roman ceramic vessel, and it confirms the Sicilian pot must have been used to contain human faeces.

Archaeologists say the 31x34cm pot could have been sat on, but was more likely used in conjunction with a wickerwork or timber chair, under which the pot could be set.

The researchers say their method of parasite analysis could help unlock the stinky secrets of ceramics across the ancient Roman world.

“The findings show that parasite analysis can provide important clues for ceramic research,” says Rabinow. Although the technique only works if the person producing the poop was infected with a common parasite, the researchers note that where parasites are endemic in the developing world, around half of all people are infected by at least one type. If Romans were as often infected, it’s likely many if not most chamber pots will be identifiable.

“Where Roman pots in museums are noted to have these mineralised concretions inside the base, they can now be sampled using our technique to see if they were also used as chamber pots,” says Piers Mitchell, a parasite expert and leader of the laboratory study. 

https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/archaeology/ancient-urn-roman-toilet/