'Homo Floresiensis' Fossils From 18,000 Years Ago Separates Species From Modern Man

A group of international researchers have the linked the fossil remains of Homo floresiensis, an extinct species, to modern human beings. The homo floresiensis evolved from a separate species than modern humans.

The skeletal remains of nine homo floresiensis were found in the Indonesian Island of Flores in 2003, which dated back to about 18,000 years ago, according to the study. At first, some researchers thought that the skeletons were remains of Hobbits, since they were smaller than modern humans. Another speculation was that they were modern humans that suffered from microcephaly, which is a condition that causes a person to have a small body and head.

The researchers carried out a DNA analysis of the teeth, where they found that the creatures belonged to separate species from modern man. The researchers compared and contrasted the homo floresiensis teeth to the teeth of 490 modern humans worldwide, and with teeth from extinct human cousins.

The homo floresiensis teeth were similar to modern humans' but they also had different features. Some of the traits were similar to early hominins and some of them were similar to advanced hominins. Based on the dissimilarities to modern humans, the researchers concluded that the species most likely derived from Homo erectus and they were small due to limited resources.

The findings of this study were published in PLOS ONE.

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