Altai mountains, Siberia 106, 113, 119, 123
Americas 150 see also North America; Pacific Coast of America
anatomical modernity xv
antelopes 16, 18, 63, 128
anthracotheres 15
apes:
dietary supplementation with protein foods 12, 40
Miocene forest 1–4, 6–8, 10–11
Aquatic Ape Hypothesis 13, 26, 51
Arabia 80
Acheulian sites 77
aridification 70, 77
erectus 55, 75, 77
Neanderthals 105–6, 119
rain chasers 87, 109, 110
Arabian Desert 77, 79, 130, 135
Arabian Mountains 118
Ardipithecus see Ramidus
Asia see central Asia; Eurasia; south-east Asia
Atapuerca, Spain ix, x
Atlantic Ocean, influence on climate 65, 99–100
Australia 132–44
first arrival of humans 125
human expansion into 111, 108, 116, 123
human colonization of interior 133–6
indigenous peoples xvii, 132–3, 136–44, 145–6
western colonizers’ attitudes xvii, 132–3, 136, 145
see also Mardu people; Murray-Darling Basin
australopithecines 28–40, 79
bipedalism 31, 32, 36
diet 30–2, 36, 40
habitat 28–30, 36, 38–9, 42
hind limb proportions 37, 45
population boom 36
rocky places used for shelter 37–9
stone tools 39–40
Australopithecus 28–33, 55
bipedalism 31, 32, 36
diet 30–2, 33, 36
habitat 28–30, 33, 36
height 44
Australopithecus afarensis 30, 32
Australopithecus africanus 30
Australopithecus anamensis 30–1
Australopithecus habilis see Homo-Australopithecus habilis/rudolfensis
Australopithecus sediba 30, 35
bipedal/arboreal movement 32
diet 31–2, 40
baboons (Papio) 24, 34, 46
habitat 34
Bajondillo, Spain 101–2
Baldwin Effect 47–8, 50
Balkan Mountains 98
Barbary macaques 27–8, 160n
Barbary sheep 91, 92
Bateson, Patrick 48
behavioural evolution xiv–xv, xvii
behavioural modernity xv–xvi
biogeography xi
biological species concept vii, x, 153n
and allopatric populations viii
biology xi
as underlying reality 152
and the veneer of culture 11
bipedalism 31, 32
facultative 17, 23–4
birds:
distribution of Palaearctic 112–15
diversity in different geographical regions 79
fossils as habitat indicators 103, 121–2
group hunting and scavenging 4–6
substitution of rocky places for trees 122
bison 65
Black Sea coast 98
body size, effect on movement of animals 45
bonobos (Pan) 25
boomerangs 139
brain:
alleged importance of freshwater and marine foods 102
fuelling through cooked food 74
function in forest primates 1–4
working temperature needs 57–8
brain size:
and data storage and retrieval xii, 58, 85
erectus 53
habilis 57
increase corresponding to larger body size 57
and predisposition for culture 12–13
primate arms race 8
primates 3–4, 12–13, 40
rain chasers 94
Ramidus 16
steady and gradual increase in 81, 84
supposed sharp increase 600 thousand years ago 80, 81
variations amongst first humans 57
Britain 100
periods of desertion 76
buffalo 91
bushland 30, 33
Bushmen 58
C4 grasses 17, 31, 33, 34, 35
capuchins (Cebus) 24–5
carnivores 9, 46, 63
first primate 9, 46–7
Carpathians 98, 106
catfish 19, 59, 63, 93, 158n cattle 91,
Caucasus 76, 106, 118, 119, 123
Caucasus-Zagros Launchpad 119–21, 121
caves and cave dwelling:
erectus 75, 76–7
Neanderthals 103, 104, 150
rain chasers 92–3, 131
Sel’ungur, Kyrgyzstan 77
central Asia 111
as area of cultural interchange 109
erectus 76–7, 79, 96
expansion of deserts 79
Middle Pleistocene 76–7, 79
Neanderthal penetration 112, 118–19
rain chaser penetration 120–1
Cerling, Thure 17, 18, 22
cheetahs 50–1
chimpanzees (Pan) 3, 12, 17, 25
diet 31
tool use 39
China 3, 9, 67, 97, 111, 116, 121
bird diversity 79
earliest human presence 66–7
Middle Pleistocene 75, 76, 77–8, 96
clay figurines 147
climate 104–5
cooling and drying 60–1, 92–3, 103, 149
continental 98, 118
effects of Atlantic Ocean 65, 99–100
effect of the coast 100–1
fluctuations 69–70, 82, 84, 94, 96–7
Holocene stability 151
and population movement up and down altitude zones 117–18
similarity across southern Middle Earth 109
south-east Asia and Africa compared 60–1
warming 61, 116
see also glacials; interglacials
coast and coastal sites 91, 116, 125
Australian early settlers 135
and fresh water 93, 100
human exploitation from very early times 62, 92
long-term sites 129, 130
microclimates 100–1
Middle Pleistocene 75
Neanderthal habitations 92, 98–9, 100–2, 103, 105
resource abundance, Pacific coast of America 147–9
South Africa 92–3, 102
south-east Asia 59–60, 62, 68
unsuitability as launchpad for geographical expansion 150
cognitive superiority, and modernity xvi
Cold Spring Harbor symposia vii
colobine monkeys 15, 18
Coobool Creek cemetery, Australia 143
cooking 74, 138
anatomical changes as evidence of 74
core body temperature 57–8
Cretaceous 1
crocodiles 15, 19, 42, 60, 63, 93
culture 94
confusion with behavioural progressions xvi
interchange 105, 109
veneer over biology 11
deer 21, 63, 65, 66, 67, 128
Denisova Cave, Siberia 119
Denisovans x–ii, 119–20, 123
absence from European genome 121
contact with Neanderthals 117
genetic legacy ix, 111
genetic links with present-day Melanesians/Polynesians 112, 115, 119
Himalayan launchpad 112–17, 119
in south-east Asia 123–4
Dennell, Robin 55, 67, 75
desert barriers 76, 79–80
desert dwellers 138–43, 146
desert encroachment 13, 14, 60, 69, 80, 90, 94, 98
diet:
australopithecines 40
Australopithecus 33
A. afarensis 30
A. anamensis 30–1
A. sediba 31–2, 40
early hominids 25
Homo-Australopithecus 35
Mardu people 138
&nbs
p; primates 2–3, 12
Ramidus 17
see also meat eating
Dmanisi hominids 54–5, 56, 66
fifth skull xviii
stature 56
dogs 9, 66
Dolni Vestonice, Czech Republic 147
dolphins 4, 6, 101
Doñana National Park, Spain, and seasonal flooding 18–21, 25
Dreaming 143
drought 20, 21, 47, 58, 92, 93–4
and aestivation 28
Africa 70, 94
Australia 143
Gibraltar 28
impact on Neanderthals 103, 104, 105
impact on rain chasers 105
and mobility 25
Early Oligocene 9
East Africa 34, 41, 46, 67
australopithecine diet 30–1
erectus 41, 62
favourable conditions for humans, Middle Pleistocene 80
increasing climatic fluctuations 70
Oldowan technology 65
putative human origins 41, 55
wetland patchworks 65
elephants 15, 25, 42, 60, 63, 65, 66, 67, 73, 91
El-Kherba 63–4
Eocene, Late 9
Ethiopia 16, 33, 35, 39, 93, 109
Eurasia:
bird diversity 79, 113
Denisovans 115
expansion of rain chasers into 119–20, 130
heidelbergensis 80–1
population segregation 81
Middle Pleistocene 75–6
Neanderthal penetration 116–20, 121–2
Neanderthal settlements xii–xiii, 85, 95–107, 151
rain chaser habitat 122–3
Eurasian Plain xv, 113
Europe 80, 108, 112, 151
arrival of first humans 67, 120–1
bird diversity 79
erectus 64–6, 75–6, 96
glaciations 69, 80
Gravettians 147
late arrival of Acheulian technology 65
Middle Pleistocene 75–6
Neanderthal extinctions 97–8
Neanderthal strongholds 96–7, 98–9, 106
population isolation 79–80
extinction:
birds during glacial periods 79
and climate oscillation 69
Neanderthals 97–8
Paranthropus 34
Fa, Darren xix, 78
Finlayson, Geraldine xviii, xix, 78
Finlayson, Stewart xviii–xix
fire, control over 74–5, 76, 93, 103, 133, 143
fish 15, 42, 59–60, 89, 101, 137
Flores Hobbit viii, 61–2, 64, 124–5
flowering plants 1–2
flying fish 4–5
food density, and primate behaviour 7–8
forest canopy 1–10
fossils, as environmental indicators 13–14
France 98, 99, 102
fruit eating, and brain development 2–4
Gamble, Clive 75
gavials 15, 60
gazelles 63, 66, 67, 91, 92, 147
genetic bottlenecks 84, 94
geographical expansion:
coast unsuitable as avenue 150
first humans 67–8
forced by population growth 55–6
nomad/sedentary peoples 150
rain chasers 108–33
and reliable water supply 149–50
see also sources and sinks model
Gesher Benot Ya’aqov (GBY) xv, 73–5, 149
giant pandas 3, 9–10, 78
Gibraltar:
Barbary macaques 27–8
climate 99, 100–1
drought 28, 104–5
Neanderthals 96, 97, 100, 105, 148–9
seismic activity 104
giraffes 16, 48, 63, 91
glacial cycles 36
glaciations 80, 97, 110, 111
gomphotheres 15
Gorham’s cave, Gibraltar 97, 99, 104, 148–9
gorillas (Gorilla) 3, 25
grasping hands 2, 59
Gravettians 147, 148
groups:
challenges of 8
fruit-eating forest primates 6–7
predatory birds 4–6
and predisposition for culture 12–13
Gymnarchus (knife fish) 15
habitats:
australopithecines 28–30, 36, 38–9, 42
Australopithecus 28–30, 33, 36
erectus 42, 59–61, 62, 63–4, 72–3
Homo-Australopithecus 29–30, 35, 37
hunter-gatherers 127–30
management 124–5
Neanderthals 102–4, 121–2
Paranthropus 33–4
Ramidus 17–19, 21, 22–5
‘savannah’/woodland habitat debate 13, 17–18
Toumaï 13–16, 21, 22–5
UNESCO definitions 22, 159–60n
see also rocky places; savannah/grassland; water/trees/open spaces
Hardy, Sir Alistair 13
Haua Fteah, Libya 91
Henry, Amanda 31
Himalayan launchpad 113–18, 114–17 Fig 5, 119
Himalayas 111
hippos 15, 19, 34, 42, 63, 66, 93
Hobbit see Flores Hobbit Holocene 151
hominids see australopithecines; Ramidus; Toumaï
Homo rhodesiensis 81, 95
Homo sapiens (humans generally):
adaptation to dry, open plains 106
all populations after 1.8 million years ago attributable 81–2
anatomical change and environmental/climactic conditions xi–xix
branching of separate lineages x, 87
characteristic environments 128–30
connectivity between lineages 90
continuous evolution towards slender build and large brains 85–6
correct categorization vii–viii
desert dwellers 134–42, 144
importance of water in evolution xi–xiv, xvii, 49, 125–7
improbability 46–7, 62
as inverted pandas 9–10
large brains 57, 59, 85, 94
last stages of evolution 128–30
lightweight build 94, 105, 106–7, 122
Middle Pleistocene 69–82
mosaic nature xii, 86, 110
need for water 125–30
nomenclature 81–2, 95–6
origins (1.8 million years ago) 41, 54, 111, 133, 150
paradoxical nature 146
population fragmentation 81, 82, 84
rainforest heritage 9, 24, 25, 59, 144, 146
sea crossings 61–2, 68
technological innovation 87–90
variability in 56–7
water as evolutionary driver xii–xiv, xvii, 37, 47, 49, 52, 58, 59, 84–5, 125–31
Water Optimization Hypothesis 125–30
unity as a polytypic species vii–xiv, xvii–xviii, 82, 86–7, 88
Homo sapiens erectus (first humans) x, xii, xviii, 41–53, 54–68, 69–82, 88
Acheulian technology 52–3, 58–9, 70–2
activities limited to heat of the day 51
in Africa 41–53, 54, 62
and the Baldwin effect 48–9
body weight and stature 43–5, 57, 83, 164n
brain size 57, 59
claimed as separate species x, 86–7, 88
climate and landscape at first
appearance 42–3
control of fire 74–5
diet 59, 161n
expansion into arid environments 70–2
as first primate carnivore 46–7
habilis compared 43–6
habitat 42, 59–61, 62, 63–4, 72–3, 164n
hair loss 50, 51–2
as Homo sapiens x–xi, xviii, 86–7
hunting and scavenging 49–51
innovation as result of stress and marginalisation 61
isolation and reunification in southern Middle Earth 86
lengthening of hind limbs 45–6
across Middle
Earth 62–8
mobility 45–6, 494–50, 52–3, 75
place of origin 41, 54, 55
population and geographical expansion 55–6
population isolation 61, 69–70
regional isolation 70
seasonal change of location 49
in south-east Asia xii, 54, 59–61
sweating 50, 51–2, 58
time of first appearance 41, 42, 54
in Trinil 59–60
vegetarian arboreal heritage 9, 13
Homo sapiens heidelbergensis x, xvii, 95–6
arrival 600 thousand years ago 80–1, 86
considered separate species x, 80–1, 88
as subspecies of Homo sapiens x–xi, xvii, 81
Homo sapiens sapiens see rain chasers
Homo-Australopithecus habilis/rudolfensis xviii, 29, 34–5, 42, 55, 56,
brain size (habilis) 57
diet 35
distribution 35
erectus compared with habilis 43–6
habitat 29–30, 35, 37
height (habilis) 44
hind limb proportions (habilis) 45–6
lifestyle 32–3
moving towards life on the ground 37
rocky places 37
start of line 36
horses 63, 65, 66, 152
Humans Who Went Extinct, The (Finlayson) 41, 43
Hungsi-Baichbal, India 77
hunting 89, 91
ambush 92–3, 106
hybridization ix
Hydrocynus (tiger fish) 15
hyenas 4, 9, 16, 21, 66, 67
Iberian Peninsula 4, 67, 76, 96, 98, 99–100, 102
similarity of sites with Africa and Australia 131
ibexes 92
India 67, 82, 105, 109, 124
aridification 70
erectus 62
Middle Pleistocene 75, 77, 80
rain chasers 87
wetland patchworks 65
Indian Desert 130, 135
insectivorous mammals, introduction of plants into diet 1–2
interglacials 76, 97, 106, 151
Iran 106, 109, 111, 118, 119
ivory and bone xv
Java 59–61, 67, 111
Kappelman, J. 57
Kenya 41, 72
Kow Swamp cemetery, Australia 143
kudu 91
Kulpi Mara, Australia 134
Laetoli fossil tracks 32
Lake Baza, Spain 64–5, 65–6, 149
Lake Chad 15
Lamarckism 48
lammergeyers 5
land management 127, 135, 151–2
landscape paintings 152
Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) 110, 134–5, 142–3, 147
lemurs (Hapalemur) 25
Lévi-Strauss, Claude 128
Lucy 29, 32
macaques (Macaca) 24, 60
see also Barbary macaques
Majuangou, China 66–7
mammalian herbivores 46
Mardu people, Australia xv, 136–42
marginal populations 43, 61, 87
marine birds 4–5
marine molluscs 101–2
Mayr, Ernst vii–viii, ix, x
McHenry, H. M. 44
meat-eating 9, 10, 40, 46–7
Mediterranean 64, 97, 98, 102, 111, 151
as secondary source area 78
Middle Earth xiii Fig. 1, 54–68, 97
The Improbable Primate Page 19