Fossil from Serbia sheds new light on human evolution

New data on the discovery of fossils of human jaw fragment, which was found in a cave in Little Balanica Serbia, published in the prestigious scientific journal "PLoS One", announced today the Faculty of Philosophy in Belgrade.
This discovery represents the oldest human ancestors find in this part of Europe, and the article published by William Jack Rink of McMaster University in Canada and an international team led by Dusan Mihailovic with the Faculty of Philosophy and Mirjana Roksandić the University of Winnipeg (Canada).
It has been found, according to Rink, the fossil was at least 397,000 years, and that is probably older than 525,000 years, and found the oldest Eastern jaw fossil hominids Middle-Pleistocene.
Mihajlovic said that the South-East Europe is very important for understanding human evolution.
"Hello dated by the fossils from this period are very rare, and we found that this is in many ways unique. Obtained dates pushing the boundaries in the study of human evolution. Studies have shown that the Balkans represented a" gate of Europe "and was one of three refugial areas where people, plants and animals found refuge during the glacial period. inspires us all to continue the excavations, "he said.
Roksandić noted that at that time in Western Europe, human ancestors began to incorporate Neandertal features, which do not appear in this report.
"Scientists believe that the development of Neanderthal traits brought about by the Western European population in glacial periods were isolated. Contrast, Southeastern Europe has never been isolated from Asia and Africa, and the human impact on the evolution of an entirely different factors. Balkan Peninsula by apparently belonged to the home area from which the human community re-colonize Europe after the retreat of glaciers. Fossil is committed to the species Homo erectus, "she explained.
On the dating of the fossils were engaged anthropologists, archaeologists and physicists from Serbia, Canada, Great Britain and France.
Jaw was found 2006th , and dating was carried out at the University of Bordeaux, in the laboratory of Dr. Rink, McMaster University nuclear reactor and research center geotop University of Quebec at Montreal, and the analysis of sediment carried to Oxford Brookes University in the UK.
Archaeological excavations of Large and Small Balanice lasting from 2004. year, and funded by the Ministry of Culture and Information of Serbia.
Since 2010. as part of the excavation is organizing an international summer school, which is implemented by the Faculty of Philosophy and the University of Winnipeg.