1
|
Notley SR, Mitchell D, Taylor NAS. A century of exercise physiology: concepts that ignited the study of human thermoregulation. Part 4: evolution, thermal adaptation and unsupported theories of thermoregulation. Eur J Appl Physiol 2024; 124:147-218. [PMID: 37796290 DOI: 10.1007/s00421-023-05262-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/06/2023] [Accepted: 06/13/2023] [Indexed: 10/06/2023]
Abstract
This review is the final contribution to a four-part, historical series on human exercise physiology in thermally stressful conditions. The series opened with reminders of the principles governing heat exchange and an overview of our contemporary understanding of thermoregulation (Part 1). We then reviewed the development of physiological measurements (Part 2) used to reveal the autonomic processes at work during heat and cold stresses. Next, we re-examined thermal-stress tolerance and intolerance, and critiqued the indices of thermal stress and strain (Part 3). Herein, we describe the evolutionary steps that endowed humans with a unique potential to tolerate endurance activity in the heat, and we examine how those attributes can be enhanced during thermal adaptation. The first of our ancestors to qualify as an athlete was Homo erectus, who were hairless, sweating specialists with eccrine sweat glands covering almost their entire body surface. Homo sapiens were skilful behavioural thermoregulators, which preserved their resource-wasteful, autonomic thermoeffectors (shivering and sweating) for more stressful encounters. Following emigration, they regularly experienced heat and cold stress, to which they acclimatised and developed less powerful (habituated) effector responses when those stresses were re-encountered. We critique hypotheses that linked thermoregulatory differences to ancestry. By exploring short-term heat and cold acclimation, we reveal sweat hypersecretion and powerful shivering to be protective, transitional stages en route to more complete thermal adaptation (habituation). To conclude this historical series, we examine some of the concepts and hypotheses of thermoregulation during exercise that did not withstand the tests of time.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sean R Notley
- Defence Science and Technology Group, Department of Defence, Melbourne, Australia
- School of Human Kinetics, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Canada
| | - Duncan Mitchell
- Brain Function Research Group, School of Physiology, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
- School of Human Sciences, University of Western Australia, Crawley, Australia
| | - Nigel A S Taylor
- Research Institute of Human Ecology, College of Human Ecology, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Russo G, Milks A, Leder D, Koddenberg T, Starkovich BM, Duval M, Zhao JX, Darga R, Rosendahl W, Terberger T. First direct evidence of lion hunting and the early use of a lion pelt by Neanderthals. Sci Rep 2023; 13:16405. [PMID: 37828055 PMCID: PMC10570355 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-42764-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/24/2023] [Accepted: 09/14/2023] [Indexed: 10/14/2023] Open
Abstract
During the Upper Paleolithic, lions become an important theme in Paleolithic art and are more frequent in anthropogenic faunal assemblages. However, the relationship between hominins and lions in earlier periods is poorly known and primarily interpreted as interspecies competition. Here we present new evidence for Neanderthal-cave lion interactions during the Middle Paleolithic. We report new evidence of hunting lesions on the 48,000 old cave lion skeleton found at Siegsdorf (Germany) that attest to the earliest direct instance of a large predator kill in human history. A comparative analysis of a partial puncture to a rib suggests that the fatal stab was delivered with a wooden thrusting spear. We also present the discovery of distal lion phalanges at least 190,000 old from Einhornhöhle (Germany), representing the earliest example of the use of cave lion skin by Neanderthals in Central Europe. Our study provides novel evidence on a new dimension of Neanderthal behavioral complexity.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Gabriele Russo
- Paleoanthropology, Senckenberg Centre for Human Evolution and Palaeoenvironment, Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen, 72070, Tübingen, Germany.
- Lower Saxony State Office for Cultural Heritage, Niedersächsisches Landesamt Für Denkmalpflege, 30175, Hanover, Germany.
| | - Annemieke Milks
- Department of Archaeology, University of Reading, Reading, RG6 6DW, UK
| | - Dirk Leder
- Lower Saxony State Office for Cultural Heritage, Niedersächsisches Landesamt Für Denkmalpflege, 30175, Hanover, Germany
| | - Tim Koddenberg
- Department of Wood Biology and Wood Products, University of Göttingen, 37077, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Britt M Starkovich
- Senckenberg Centre for Human Evolution and Palaeoenvironment, University of Tübingen, 72070, Tübingen, Germany
- Institute for Archaeological Sciences, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - M Duval
- Centro Nacional de Investigación sobre la Evolución Humana (CENIEH), 09002, Burgos, Spain
- Australian Research Centre for Human Evolution (ARCHE), Griffith University, Nathan, QLD, 4111, Australia
- Palaeoscience Labs, Department Archaeology and History, La Trobe University, Melbourne Campus, Bundoora, VIC, 3086, Australia
| | - J-X Zhao
- Radiogenic Isotope Facility, School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, 4072, Australia
| | - Robert Darga
- Südostbayerisches Naturkunde- Und Mammut-Museum, Siegsdorf, Germany
| | - Wilfried Rosendahl
- Reiss-Engelhorn-Museen, Zeughaus C5, 68159, Manssnheim, Germany
- Curt-Engelhorn-Center of Archaeometrie, C4,8, 68159, Mannheim, Germany
| | - Thomas Terberger
- Lower Saxony State Office for Cultural Heritage, Niedersächsisches Landesamt Für Denkmalpflege, 30175, Hanover, Germany
- Seminar of Prehistoric Archaeology, University of Göttingen, 37073, Göttingen, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
García-Medrano P, Martinón-Torres M, Ashton N. Introduction to special issue "Humans in transition: The occupation of Western Europe, 600-400 Ka". J Hum Evol 2023; 180:103388. [PMID: 37224624 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2023.103388] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/26/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Paula García-Medrano
- Dept. Britain, Europe and Prehistory, British Museum, Frank House, 56 Orsman Road, N1 5QJ, London, UK; UMR 7194 HNHP, MNHN-CNRS-UPVD, Département Homme et Environnement, Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, IPH 1 Rue René Panhard, 75013, Paris, France; Institut Català de Paleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social (IPHES-CERCA), Zona Educacional 4, Campus Sescelades URV (Edifici W3), 43007, Tarragona, Spain; Universitat Rovira i Virgili, Departament d'Història i Història de l'Art, Avinguda de Catalunya 35, 43002, Tarragona, Spain.
| | - María Martinón-Torres
- Centro Nacional de Investigacion sobre la Evolucion Humana (CENIEH), Paseo de la Sierra de Atapuerca 3, 09002, Burgos, Spain; Anthropology Department, University College London, London, UK
| | - Nick Ashton
- Dept. Britain, Europe and Prehistory, British Museum, Frank House, 56 Orsman Road, N1 5QJ, London, UK
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Verheijen I, Starkovich BM, Serangeli J, van Kolfschoten T, Conard NJ. Early evidence for bear exploitation during MIS 9 from the site of Schöningen 12 (Germany). J Hum Evol 2023; 177:103294. [PMID: 36566141 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2022.103294] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/14/2022] [Revised: 10/22/2022] [Accepted: 10/25/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
A cutmarked bear metatarsal and phalanx from the German open-air sites of Schöningen 12 II-1 and 12 B, respectively, correlated with the interglacial optimum of MIS 9 (ca. 320 ka), provide early evidence for the exploitation of bear skins. Archaeological sites with evidence of bear exploitation from the Lower Paleolithic are rare, with only Boxgrove (United Kingdom) and Bilzingsleben (Germany) yielding cutmarked bear bones indicating skinning. We interpret these finds as evidence for bear hunting and primary access since bear skins are best extracted shortly after the animal's death. The very thin cutmarks found on the Schöningen specimens indicate delicate butchering and show similarities in butchery patterns to bears from other Paleolithic sites. The Eurasian Lower Paleolithic record does not show any evidence for the exploitation of bear meat; only Middle Paleolithic sites, such as Biache-Saint-Vaast (France; ca. 175 ka) and Taubach (Germany; ca. 120 ka), yield evidence for the exploitation of both skin and meat from bear carcasses. Bear skins have high insulating properties and might have played a role in the adaptations of Middle Pleistocene hominins to the cold and harsh winter conditions of Northwestern Europe.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ivo Verheijen
- University of Tübingen, Senckenberg Centre for Human Evolution and Paleoenvironment, Paläon 1, 38364 Schöningen, Germany; Forschungsmuseum Schöningen, Paläon 1, 38364 Schöningen, Germany.
| | - Britt M Starkovich
- Senckenberg Centre for Human Evolution and Paleoenvironment, University of Tübingen, Hölderlinstrasse 12, 72074 Tübingen, Germany; Institute for Archaeological Sciences, University of Tübingen, Hölderlinstrasse 12, 72074 Tübingen, Germany
| | - Jordi Serangeli
- University of Tübingen, Senckenberg Centre for Human Evolution and Paleoenvironment, Paläon 1, 38364 Schöningen, Germany
| | - Thijs van Kolfschoten
- Faculty of Archaeology, Leiden University, Einsteinweg 2, 2333 CC Leiden, The Netherlands; Institute of Cultural Heritage, Shandong University, 72 Binhai Highway, Qingdao, 266237, China
| | - Nicholas J Conard
- Senckenberg Centre for Human Evolution and Paleoenvironment, University of Tübingen, Hölderlinstrasse 12, 72074 Tübingen, Germany; Institute for Archaeological Sciences, University of Tübingen, Hölderlinstrasse 12, 72074 Tübingen, Germany; Department of Early Prehistory and Quaternary Ecology, University of Tübingen, Schloss Hohentübingen, 72070 Tübingen, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Key A, Ashton N. Hominins likely occupied northern Europe before one million years ago. Evol Anthropol 2023; 32:10-25. [PMID: 36383204 DOI: 10.1002/evan.21966] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2022] [Revised: 06/20/2022] [Accepted: 10/29/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Our understanding of when hominins first reached northern Europe is dependent on a fragmented archaeological and fossil record known from as early as marine isotope stage (MIS) 21 or 25 (c. 840 or 950 thousand years ago [Ka]). This contrasts sharply with southern Europe, where hominin occupation is evidenced from MIS 37 to 45 (c. 1.22 or 1.39 million years ago [Ma]). Northern Europe, however, exhibits climatic, geological, demographic, and historical disadvantages when it comes to preserving fossil and archaeological evidence of early hominin habitation. It is argued here that perceived differences in first occupation timings between the two European regions needs to be revised in light of these factors. To enhance this understanding, optimal linear estimation models are run using data from the current fossil and artefact record. Results suggest northern Europe to have first been occupied as early as 1.16 Ma, or as late as 913 Ka. These timings could represent minimum date expectations and be extended through future archaeological and fossil discoveries.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Alastair Key
- Department of Archaeology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Nick Ashton
- British Museum, Department of Britain, Europe and Prehistory, London, UK
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Kot M, Berto C, Krajcarz MT, Moskal-Del Hoyo M, Gryczewska N, Szymanek M, Marciszak A, Stefaniak K, Zarzecka-Szubińska K, Lipecki G, Wertz K, Madeyska T. Frontiers of the Lower Palaeolithic expansion in Europe: Tunel Wielki Cave (Poland). Sci Rep 2022; 12:16355. [PMID: 36175468 PMCID: PMC9523034 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-20582-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2022] [Accepted: 09/15/2022] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Peopling of Central Europe by Middle Pleistocene hominids is highly debatable, mainly due to the relatively harsh climatic and environmental conditions that require cultural and anatomical adjustments. At least several archaeological sites certify human occupation in the region dated back to MIS 13-11, but they represent open-air settlements. Based on the new fieldwork conducted in Tunel Wielki Cave, we can date the human occupation traces in the cave to MIS 14-12. Bipolar-on-anvil knapping technique prevails in the lithic assemblage, made exclusively in flint. The obtained results have given ground for studying the frontiers of human oikumene and the required cultural adaptive abilities.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Małgorzata Kot
- Faculty of Archaeology, University of Warsaw, Krakowskie Przedmieście 26/28, 00-927, Warsaw, Poland.
| | - Claudio Berto
- Faculty of Archaeology, University of Warsaw, Krakowskie Przedmieście 26/28, 00-927, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Maciej T Krajcarz
- Institute of Geological Sciences, Polish Academy of Sciences, Twarda 51/55, 00-818, Warsaw, Poland
| | | | - Natalia Gryczewska
- Faculty of Archaeology, University of Warsaw, Krakowskie Przedmieście 26/28, 00-927, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Marcin Szymanek
- Faculty of Geology, University of Warsaw, Żwirki i Wigury 93, 02-089, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Adrian Marciszak
- Department of Palaeozoology, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Wrocław, Sienkiewicza 21, 50-335, Wrocław, Poland
| | - Krzysztof Stefaniak
- Department of Palaeozoology, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Wrocław, Sienkiewicza 21, 50-335, Wrocław, Poland
| | - Katarzyna Zarzecka-Szubińska
- Department of Palaeozoology, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Wrocław, Sienkiewicza 21, 50-335, Wrocław, Poland
| | - Grzegorz Lipecki
- Institute of Systematics and Evolution of Animals, Polish Academy of Sciences, Sławkowska 17, 31-016, Kraków, Poland
| | - Krzysztof Wertz
- Institute of Systematics and Evolution of Animals, Polish Academy of Sciences, Sławkowska 17, 31-016, Kraków, Poland
| | - Teresa Madeyska
- Institute of Geological Sciences, Polish Academy of Sciences, Twarda 51/55, 00-818, Warsaw, Poland
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Hosfield R. Variations by degrees: Western European paleoenvironmental fluctuations across MIS 13-11. J Hum Evol 2022; 169:103213. [PMID: 35704957 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2022.103213] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2021] [Revised: 04/28/2022] [Accepted: 04/28/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Marine Isotope Stages (MIS) 13-11 saw a major transformation in the hominin occupation of Europe, with an expansion in the scale and geographical distribution of sites and artifact assemblages. That expansion is explored here in the context of paleoenvironmental variability, focusing on geographical and chronological trends in climatic and habitat conditions at and between key Lower Paleolithic sites in Western Europe. Climatic conditions at British sites are compared across MIS 13-11, and used to test predicted values from the Oscillayers data set. Conditions at hominin and nonhominin sites are compared to explore possible limitations in hominin tolerances during MIS 13-11. Trends in conditions are explored with reference to long-term global patterns, short-term substage events, and seasonal variations. The apparent increase in the scale of hominin activity in north-western Europe during MIS 13 is surprising in light of the relatively harsh conditions of late MIS 13, and is likely to reflect significant physiological and/or behavioral adaptations, a mild south-north temperature gradient in western Europe during MIS 13, and the relatively mild, sustained conditions spanning MIS 15-13. The expanded occupation of north-western Europe during MIS 11 probably reflects the extended mild conditions of MIS 11c, since marked seasonal temperature differences and substantial behavioral changes between hominin sites in MIS 13 and 11 are not clearly evident. Site-specific conditions in south-western Europe during MIS 11 suggest milder winters, warmer summers, and reduced seasonal variability compared to north-western Europe. Some or all of these conditions may have supported larger, core populations, as may the relatively mild conditions associated with south-western European sites during MIS 12. Finally, comparisons between north-western and north-central European sites indicate relatively small differences in seasonal temperatures, suggesting that climate may only be a partial factor behind the smaller-scale occupations of north-central Europe during MIS 13-11.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Robert Hosfield
- Department of Archaeology, University of Reading, Whiteknights Campus, Reading, RG6 6AB, United Kingdom.
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Rodríguez J, Willmes C, Sommer C, Mateos A. Sustainable human population density in Western Europe between 560.000 and 360.000 years ago. Sci Rep 2022; 12:6907. [PMID: 35484382 PMCID: PMC9051054 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-10642-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2021] [Accepted: 04/01/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
The time period between 560 and 360 ka (MIS14 to MIS11) was critical for the evolution of the Neanderthal lineage and the appearance of Levallois technology in Europe. The shifts in the distribution of the human populations, driven by cyclical climate changes, are generally accepted to have played major roles in both processes. We used a dataset of palaeoclimate maps and a species distribution model to reconstruct the changes in the area of Western Europe with suitable environmental conditions for humans during 11 time intervals of the MIS14 to MIS 11 period. Eventually, the maximum sustainable human population within the suitable area during each time interval was estimated by extrapolating the relationship observed between recent hunter-gatherer population density and net primary productivity and applying it to the past. Contrary to common assumptions, our results showed the three Mediterranean Peninsulas were not the only region suitable for humans during the glacial periods. The estimated total sustainable population of Western Europe from MIS14 to MIS11 oscillated between 13,000 and 25,000 individuals. These results offer a new theoretical scenario to develop models and hypotheses to explain cultural and biological evolution during the Middle Pleistocene in Western Europe.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jesús Rodríguez
- Centro Nacional de Investigación sobre la Evolución Humana (CENIEH), Paseo Sierra de Atapuerca 3, 09002, Burgos, Spain.
| | - Christian Willmes
- Institute of Geography, University of Cologne, 50923, Cologne, Germany
| | - Christian Sommer
- The Role of Culture in Early Expansions of Humans, Research Area Geography, Heidelberg Academy of Sciences and Humanities at the University of Tübingen, Rümelinstr. 19-23, 72070, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Ana Mateos
- Centro Nacional de Investigación sobre la Evolución Humana (CENIEH), Paseo Sierra de Atapuerca 3, 09002, Burgos, Spain
| |
Collapse
|