Researchers have analyzed fossils found at Baishiya Karst Cave on the Tibetan Plateau, including a jawbone and rib bone.
DNA analysis shows the fossils belonged to Denisovans, a mysterious human species known previously only from DNA evidence found in Siberia.
This provides the first physical evidence that Denisovans lived on the Tibetan Plateau, showing they inhabited the region over 100,000 years ago.
The cave site has also yielded thousands of animal bone fragments from the same time period, giving insights into the ice age environment and how Denisovans thrive in the harsh high-altitude conditions.
This discovery suggests Denisovans were adapted for life at over 4,000 meters elevation and able to survive in the area long before Homo sapiens arrived on the roof of the world.
Analyzing the animal remains alongside the human fossils is revealing how Denisovans subsisted in the plateau environment during the ice age.
Source: CNN
