'Nutcracker Man' Feasted on Tiger Nuts: What Our Ancient Human Ancestors Ate

Our ancient ancestors lived in East Africa between 2.4 million and 1.4 million years ago. Now, scientists have found out exactly what our ancestors ate at the time. Rather than meat, this species actually mainly ate tiger nuts supplemented with insects.

The species in question is Paranthropus boisei, nicknamed "Nutcracker Man" because of his large flat molar teeth and powerful jaws. Researchers have long debated why this early human relative had such strong jaws, which indicated a diet of hard foods like nuts, and such comparatively weaker teeth, which indicated a diet of soft foods. In addition, researchers found damage to tooth enamel, which indicated that the teeth had come in contact with an abrasive substance. This could mean that the species ate C4 plants like grasses and sedges, but researchers have long debated whether these high-fiber foods could be high enough in quality for a large-brained, medium-sized hominin.

In order to find out exactly what this species might have eaten, the scientists took a look at modern-day baboons in Kenya. The nutritional demands of baboons are quite similar to those of the Nutcracker Man, which made them a perfect species to examine. The researchers found that baboons dig up tiger nuts and feed on various C4 sources.

The tiger nuts in particular would have made sense for our ancient ancestor. They're rich in starches and are highly abrasive in an unheated state. This would explain the abrasions on the hominins' teeth. In addition, tiger nuts are tough and require to be chewed for a long time. This would also explain the powerful jaws.

"Tiger nuts, still sold in health food shops as well as being widely used for grinding down and baking in many countries, would be relatively easy to find," said Gabriele Macho, one of the researchers, in a news release. "They also provided a good source of nourishment for a medium-sized hominin with a large brain. This is why these hominins were able to survive for around one million years because they could successfully forage--even through periods of climatic change."

The findings are published in the journal PLOS One.