When Did Neanderthals Go Extinct?

By the time modern humans arrived on the scene, Neanderthals were already living in fragmented groups and suffering the effects of inbreeding. While humans may or may not have been the linchpin in their final demise, Neanderthals did go extinct fairly soon after modern humans came onto the scene in Eurasia. But when and how did Neanderthals go extinct? Let’s find out!

Neanderthal vs. Homo Sapien

Neanderthals (Homo neanderthalensis) are a separate species from modern humans (Homo sapiens). Neanderthals evolved in Asia and Europe, while Africa played host to evolving Homo sapiens. Humans did not evolve from Neanderthals, despite popular depictions of humans evolving from cavemen.

Neanderthal brains are smaller in a variety of areas, which may suggest they weren’t as good as humans at things like tool use, numbers, higher concepts, and spatial integration. This is probably due to the variances between modern human and Neanderthal brains.

The skulls of Neanderthals are elongated compared to modern humans. They also had prominent eyebrows and a huge, wide nose. Other bones in the body are thicker and stockier than human bones. Neanderthals had a barrel chest in comparison to humans, which may have given them a better lung capacity. They were also shorter and stockier than humans.

When Did Neanderthals Go Extinct?

Neanderthals came into being about 400,000 years ago and were best adapted to colder climates, such as those during the Ice Age. The Ice Age lasted from 115,000 to 11,700 years ago, and it’s been postulated that as the earth warmed, Neanderthals declined. Neanderthals eventually went extinct about 40,000 years ago. Modern humans arrived in Europe approximately 5,000 years before this.

How Did Neanderthals Go Extinct?

Nobody knows why the Neanderthals went extinct. However, there are various theories regarding the extinction of the Neanderthals. A combination of events likely led to their demise.

Some of the theories regarding Neanderthal extinction include:

• Inbreeding
• Interbreeding with modern humans
• Disease and parasites
• Outcompeted by modern humans
• Climate change affected Neanderthal habitats

Inbreeding

Genetic evidence suggests some degree of inbreeding among Neanderthals, but the frequency and social acceptance of such practices remain subjects of research. If Neanderthal populations then become isolated, the probability that harmful inbreeding will occur is raised even more.

Inbreeding allows for the degradation of genetics, which causes an array of problems in subsequent generations. The longer inbreeding occurs, the more individuals born to an inbred population deviate from normal body composition and disease resistance.

Interbreeding with Modern Humans

Neanderthals and humans did interbreed during the period that the two species overlapped. As a result, almost every person alive who has non-African ancestors has a little bit of Neanderthal DNA. While it’s unlikely that interbreeding with humans caused the extinction of the Neanderthals, it’s possible that it did contribute to their demise in a small way. After all, every instance of breeding with a human would mean one less true Neanderthal child would be born.

Disease and Parasites

Disease may have also played a part in the extinction of the Neanderthals. As modern humans moved out of Africa, they may have brought diseases with them that the Neanderthals were ill-prepared to cope with. Humans would have already developed immunity against these diseases, which Neanderthals lacked. As a result, they would have decimated Neanderthal populations once contracted. This decimation is similar to the wipeout of Indigenous American tribes by European disease when the New World was explored.

Neanderthals Outcompeted by Modern Humans

It may also be that humans outcompeted Neanderthals. Neanderthals may not have been as good at collecting resources as humans. That’s because humans divided up labor between the sexes, whereas both male and female Neanderthals focused on hunting. A division of labor allows for more productivity, and the Neanderthals may have lost the existing competition because of this. Humans’ use of domesticated dogs for hunting may also have edged out Neanderthals.

Humans were able to sew complex clothing items for themselves to protect against the elements. This may have given them an advantage over Neanderthals. A modern human’s ability to pass this knowledge from generation to generation is the root of the differentiation in early clothing creation between the two species.

Climate Change Affected Neanderthal Habitats

Neanderthals were adapted to hunt large mammals that existed during the Ice Age, whereas modern humans made use of smaller meat sources like rabbits just as readily.

When the climate began to warm toward the end of the last Ice Age, some of the large mammals that Neanderthals depended on went extinct. The lack of food then had a knock-on effect on the Neanderthal population, causing numbers to dwindle.