Human ancestors in India butchered a 10-tonnes giant elephant 300,000 years ago

In a study recently published in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, an international team of researchers, including researchers from the Florida Museum of Natural History, shed new light on prehistoric human interaction and evolution through the analysis of a complete skull of the ancient elephant species Palaeoloxodon turkmenicus.

First discovered in late 2000 in the town of Pampore in India's Kashmir Valley, the skull and nearly 90 stone tools used by prehistoric humans were uncovered by researchers led by Ghulam Bhat from the University of Jammu. The fossils date back to between 300,000 and 400,000 years ago, providing evidence about life in the late Middle Pleistocene.

Members of the species Palaeoloxodon turkmenicus greatly exceeded the size of modern African elephants. Adults grew to around four meters tall at the shoulder and weighed about 10 tonnes. Some members of the genus could weigh more than double that of current African elephants.

The discovery suggests that early humans not only interacted with these giants but also used them as a food source. Researchers found evidence that early humans butchered Palaeoloxodon turkmenicus, breaking their bones to extract nutrient-rich bone marrow. Signs of breakage and flaking of the elephant bones suggest exploitation by humans.

"Given the size of these animals and the relatively small size of human groups, it is unlikely that they would have been able to completely dismember this elephant before it began to rot," said Dr. Simon Parfitt, a human evolution researcher at the Natural History Museum in London.

Although there is no direct evidence of hunting, such as spear points embedded in the bones, researchers conclude that these prehistoric humans exploited the carcass of the elephant. Flakes from the bones of the elephants have provided the earliest evidence of animal butchery in India, predating previous findings by hundreds of thousands of years.

The stone tools discovered alongside the skull have helped researchers understand how early human ancestors were living. The 87 stone tools indicate that they used these implements to butcher large animals like the elephants found near Pampore. The tools were made of basalt, a type of rock not found in the immediate area, suggesting that ancient hominids worked the basalt in the Kashmir Valley to adapt it to their needs.

"We now know for sure that hominids in the Kashmir Valley were feeding on elephants," said Dr. Advait Jukar, the lead author from the Florida Museum of Natural History. The analysis of these tools suggests that hominids of the Kashmir Valley possessed knowledge to process bones and extract marrow.

The skull itself presents unique characteristics that have intrigued scientists. "The Kashmir fossil skull appears to differ from other Palaeoloxodon skulls found in India, lacking the prominent, headband-like bony crest seen in classic specimens." This has led researchers to theorize that the two skulls, from India and Turkmenistan, represent a distinct species previously known very little about, with a broad distribution from Central Asia to the northern Indian Subcontinent.

"From the general shape of the skull, it's quite apparent that the elephant belonged to Palaeoloxodon, or straight-tusked elephants, among the largest land mammals that ever lived," said Dr. Steven Zhang from the University of Helsinki. "Yet what's puzzled experts for some time is that the Kashmir skull lacks a thickened, forward-projecting crest at the skull roof which typifies other Palaeoloxodon skulls found in India."

The Palaeoloxodon genus first evolved in Africa between 1.5 and 1 million years ago before dispersing across vast parts of Eurasia. The discovery raises further questions about the extinction of the Palaeoloxodon elephants and may help resolve another mystery about the elephant family tree.

There is extremely little evidence of hominins in the Indian subcontinent, and only one fossil hominin, the Narmada Man, has ever been found. Before this discovery, the earliest evidence of human interaction with animals in India dated back less than 10,000 years.

The findings reinforce the idea that late Middle Pleistocene hominids had complex strategies to exploit their environment.

This article was written in collaboration with generative AI company Alchemiq