Big headed “Homo Juluensis” roamed Asia over 300,000 years ago.

A group of humans with extraordinary physical features roamed the landscape of modern-day China over 300,000 years ago. Called Homo Juluensis, or "Juluren," this ancient human species had strikingly large heads and equally large brains, according to a new study in the journal Nature Communications.

The authors, anthropologists Christopher Bae from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa and Xiujie Wu from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, believe the Juluren is a previously unknown lineage of humans that challenges long-held assumptions about human evolution in Asia.

The journey to uncover the Juluren's story began decades ago. Bae, a seasoned anthropologist, had spent over 30 years piecing together the scattered fragments of human evolution across Asia. Meanwhile, Wu had been delving into the fossils unearthed in China, which resisted easy categorization. Together, they noticed a pattern: certain fossil features - particularly skull fragments and jawbones - didn’t fit neatly into known categories like Homo erectus, Neanderthals, or Denisovans, due to bigger heads.

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Drawing on their combined expertise, they proposed a new species, Homo Juluensis. Unlike the enigmatic Denisovans, who are mostly known from DNA evidence, the Juluren boast a broader fossil record.

Their robust skulls, large brains, and unique dental structures set them apart from other hominins, the two said in a statement.

The Juluren thrived during the late Middle and early Late Pleistocene, roughly 300,000 to 50,000 years ago. They were skilled hunters, often pursuing wild horses in small, cooperative groups. Archaeological evidence suggests they crafted stone tools and possibly processed animal hides for clothing or shelter - essential survival skills for the challenging environments of eastern Asia.

This mysterious species likely coexisted with other human relatives, including Homo Sapiens, Neanderthals, and Denisovans. Yet, their precise relationship with these groups remains unclear. Some researchers speculate that the Juluren may represent a subset of Denisovans, while others argue they are distinct. There’s no general agreement on this issue in the scientific community as yet.

A new perspective on human evolution

The key breakthrough in identifying the Juluren came from a novel approach to organizing the fossil record. Bae likened it to sorting through an old family photo album filled with faded, unlabeled pictures. By carefully reanalyzing fossils from sites across China, Korea, Japan, and Southeast Asia, Bae and Wu created a clearer, more organized framework for understanding these ancient humans.

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Their work has profound implications. For years, fossils that didn’t clearly belong to Homo Erectus, Neanderthals, or modern humans were lumped together haphazardly. The introduction of Homo Juluensis brings clarity to this chaotic record, offering a glimpse into the intricate tapestry of human evolution.

The Juluren’s discovery highlights how much remains unknown about humanity’s deep past. Bae and Wu emphasize that the discovery of Homo Juluensis forces a reevaluation of evolutionary models, underscoring a diversity of human groups that once roamed the Earth, each contributing a unique chapter to the story of our species.

The discovery of this lineage now opens a new chapter in paleontological research and the main question the two scientists would want to answer is why the Juluren disappeared 50,000 years ago?

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