J Hum Evol 2011 Aug 19;61(2):186-96. Epub 2011 Apr 19.
Department of Anthropology, University of Winnipeg, MB, Canada.
J Hum Evol 2020 08 25;145:102739. Epub 2020 Jun 25.
Muséum National d'Histoire naturelle, UMR7194, UPVD, Centre Européen de Recherches Préhistoriques de Tautavel, Paris, France. Electronic address:
Here, we present a metric and morphological study of the molar remains from the Montmaurin-La Niche mandible by means of microcomputed tomography. According to the last analysis, based on the combination of geomorphological and paleontological data, the level bearing this human mandible probably corresponds to the marine isotope stages (MIS) 7. These data place the Montmaurin-La Niche in a chronologically intermediate position between the Neanderthals and the Middle Pleistocene fossils (e. Read More
J Hum Evol 2016 Apr 3;93:63-81. Epub 2016 Mar 3.
Department of Anthropology, University of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.
The Middle Pleistocene represents a period of critical importance in human evolution, marked by encephalisation and dental reduction, and increasing diversification of temporally and spatially distributed hominin lineages in Africa, Asia and Europe. New specimens, especially from areas less well represented in the fossil record, can inform the debate on morphological changes to the skeleton and teeth and the phylogenetic course of human evolution during this period. The mandible from the cave of Mala Balanica, Serbia has recently been re-dated to at least 400 ka, and its well-preserved dentition presents an excellent opportunity to characterize molar crown morphology at this time period, and re-examine claims for a lack of Neandertal affinities in the specimen. Read More
PLoS One 2013 6;8(2):e54608. Epub 2013 Feb 6.
School of Geography and Earth Sciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
Newly obtained ages, based on electron spin resonance combined with uranium series isotopic analysis, and infrared/post-infrared luminescence dating, provide a minimum age that lies between 397 and 525 ka for the hominin mandible BH-1 from Mala Balanica cave, Serbia. This confirms it as the easternmost hominin specimen in Europe dated to the Middle Pleistocene. Inferences drawn from the morphology of the mandible BH-1 place it outside currently observed variation of European Homo heidelbergensis. Read More
Neandertals and their immediate predecessors are commonly considered to be the only humans inhabiting Europe in the Middle and early Late Pleistocene. Most Middle Pleistocene western European specimens show evidence of a developing Neandertal morphology, supporting the notion that these traits evolved at the extreme West of the continent due, at least partially, to the isolation produced by glacial events. The recent discovery of a mandible, BH-1, from Mala Balanica (Serbia), with primitive character states comparable with Early Pleistocene mandibular specimens, is associated with a minimum radiometric date of 113 + 72 - 43 ka. Read More