Early development of the Neanderthal ribcage reveals a different body shape at birth compared to modern humans

This work was funded by the IdEx University of Bordeaux Investments for the Future program (ANR-10-IDEX-03-02); projects CGL2012-37279 and CGL2015-63648P (Spanish Ministry of Economy, Industry, and Competitiveness), CGL2015-65387-C3-2-P (MINECO/FEDER), and PGC2018-093925-B-C33 (FEDER/Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación-Agencia Estatal de Investigación); and Research Group IT1044-16 from the Eusko Jaurlaritza-Gobierno Vasco and Group PPG17/05 from the Universidad del País Vasco-Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea. The “Juan de la Cierva Formación” program (FJCI-2017-32157), from the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation, and Universities, funds D.G.-M. A.G.-O. is funded by a Ramón y Cajal fellowship (RYC-2017-22558).
Ontogenetic studies provide clues for understanding important paleobiological aspects of extinct species. When compared to that of modern humans, the adult Neanderthal thorax was shorter, deeper, and wider. This is related to the wide Neanderthal body and is consistent with their hypothetical large requirements for energy and oxygen. Whether these differences were already established at birth or appeared later during development is unknown. To delve into this question, we use virtual reconstruction tools and geometric morphometrics to recover the 3D morphology of the ribcages of four Neanderthal individuals from birth to around 3 years old: Mezmaiskaya 1, Le Moustier 2, Dederiyeh 1, and Roc de Marsal. Our results indicate that the comparatively deep and short ribcage of the Neanderthals was already present at birth, as were other skeletal species-specific traits. This morphology possibly represents the plesiomorphic condition shared with Homo erectus, and it is likely linked to large energetic requirements.
Depto. de Biodiversidad, Ecología y Evolución
Fac. de Ciencias Biológicas
TRUE
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