News Humans

Ancient people and Neandertals were extreme travelers

Stone Age groups' leg bones, spears reflect remarkably long treks

By Bruce Bower

- More than 2 years ago

The Stone Age could just as easily be called the Roam Age.

DISTANT POINTS Chemical signatures of stone spear points from a southern African site (shown) indicate that people there regularly obtained tool-making rock from more than 220 kilometers away. Sheila Coulson, U. of Oslo

Two new studies published February 27 in the Journal of Human Evolution advance the idea that ancient people and Neandertals walked or ran far greater distances than any human groups that followed, including more recent hunter-gatherers and today’s long-distance runners.