Extinction of large prey spurred development of prehistoric human brain

A groundbreaking study by Israeli researchers suggests that ancient technologies developed by humans to hunt smaller, faster prey led to an overall improvement of cognitive abilities as a species.

In the paper, the scientists explore topics such as why humans suddenly became smarter and what was the advantage of having a large brain that consumes so much energy.

"Facts about this continual evolution of hunting weapons, necessarily accompanied by improvement of human cognition and skills, have been known for a long time; and yet, a unifying hypothesis for explaining these facts or attributing them to some change in the environment, was not proposed. In our research we have tried to address this challenge," said the researchers. 

Led by professors Dr. Miki Ben-Dor and Professor Ran Barkai from the Department of Archaeology at Tel Aviv University (TAU), they designed a unified hypothesis, correlating the evolution of hunting weapons with human culture and physiology. The new findings on the prehistoric development of the human brain in the scientific journal Quaternary.

Researchers analyzed nine paleolithic sites across south and east Africa and Europe where Homo Sapiens evolved 300,000 years ago. They examined the technological transitions from wood-tipped weapons used to hunt large prey to the use of stone-spears on smaller prey and attributed the change to a progressive decline in prey size. 

At the beginning of the period, the dominant species of prey was a 12-ton elephant, but they disappeared around 300,000 years ago as a result of overhunting and climate change. During that time, early humans turned to hunting smaller animals, such as the gazelle, which weighed in only at 25 kilograms (55 pounds). Humans were therefore forced to innovate more sophisticated hunting methods to catch the smaller animals.

Professor Barkai explained, "We demonstrate that these biological and cognitive changes correlate directly with the size of prey. To hunt small elusive animals, humans had to become smarter, faster, more focused, more observant, and more collaborative. They had to develop new weapons for hunting from afar and learn how to track their prey." Some of the new hunting aids they used included domesticated dogs, traps, and fishing hooks.

Barkai continued, "We provide it is evolutionary pressure that has generated improvements in overall human abilities," lending a significant puzzle piece in understanding the bigger picture of human evolutionary adaptations. 

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