New archaeological evidence shows that Neanderthals and Homo sapiens displayed strikingly similar behaviors while living in a cave located in what is now Turkey. according to a study published in the journal PNAS. The research was led by İsmail Baykara of the Department of Archaeology at Gaziantep University.
The findings come from Üçağızlı II Cave, a site along Turkey’s Mediterranean coast near the Orontes River. The location sits in the northern Levant, a region long used as a corridor for early humans traveling between Africa and Eurasia.
Researchers excavated a chamber inside the cave and uncovered layers of artifacts, animal remains, and human fossils spanning roughly 30,000 years. Dating methods placed the oldest layer between about 77,000 and 59,000 years ago. Teeth recovered from that period belonged to Neanderthals.
A younger layer, dated to between 59,000 and 47,000 years ago, contained teeth identified as Homo sapiens. The timing lines up closely with genetic estimates for a major wave of modern humans leaving Africa.
Neanderthals and Homo sapiens shared strikingly similar behaviors
What stood out to researchers was not just who lived there, but how they lived. Both species used nearly identical stone tool techniques, favoring a method known as parallel flake production. Both hunted the same animals, mostly deer, wild goats, and wild boar.
And both collected the same type of sea snail shell, called Columbella rustica, apparently for decoration rather than food. Some shells showed signs of deliberate perforation, while others showed color changes from heat exposure.
Researchers said this pattern points to a shared local culture that persisted across two different human species for roughly 20,000 years.
Baykara and colleagues noted that the exact reason behind this behavioral consistency is still unclear, but they suspect the two groups had direct contact and passed cultural habits between one another rather than simply replacing each other.
Comparing the site to other ancient human cave findings
The pattern differs from evidence found at Mandrin Cave in France, where occupation by the two species appeared to alternate in distinct, separate layers.
Instead, the Üçağızlı findings resemble an earlier case documented at Tinshemet Cave in Israel, where a shared culture also appeared to span both species.
The study leaves several questions unanswered, including how far this shared behavior extended geographically and whether it connects to known interbreeding between Neanderthals and modern humans during this period.
Researchers said further excavation at Üçağızlı II Cave and nearby sites will be needed to build a fuller picture of how these two human species coexisted, and possibly influenced each other, during a critical period of human evolution.
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