Open research questions in Pleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology

What the literature leaves open

• the high costs of nutritional analyses limited the number of species that could be analyzed, - the archaeological record is biased toward supporting the hypothesis that cormous USOs were favored, - some edible species could have been foraged and consumed without leaving a record, - there are no extant hunter-gatherers living in the CFR

  Ranking of Cape Geophytes by Proxies for the Benefits and Costs of Harvesting their Underground Storage Organs · 2026 · DOI

• The paper identifies a gap in our understanding of the benefits and costs of harvesting underground storage organs of Cape geophytes. Prior work has focused on the ethnographic and archaeological evidence, but has not quantified the proxies for energetic benefits and harvesting costs.

  Ranking of Cape Geophytes by Proxies for the Benefits and Costs of Harvesting their Underground Storage Organs · 2026 · DOI

• The lack of detailed documentation of the conservation process for fragile archaeological remains. The need for appropriate conservation techniques to enable further research on such remains.

  Conservation of the Shanidar Z Neanderthal · 2026 · DOI

• The need for precise identification of trench locations. The challenge of interpreting the site's complex stratigraphy and cultural sequence. The need for careful analysis of the abundant faunal remains and lithic artefacts.

  Revisiting Hazar Merd Cave: 100 years after Dorothy Garrod’s excavations · 2026 · DOI

• The need for refined understanding of the site's stratigraphy and cultural sequence. The need for investigation of the final phase of Neanderthal existence and their encounters with early modern humans.

  Revisiting Hazar Merd Cave: 100 years after Dorothy Garrod’s excavations · 2026 · DOI

• The paper identifies the challenge of lack of systematic research in the region. The difficulty of identifying and characterizing Palaeolithic localities is also a challenge. The paper also notes the challenge of understanding the technological character of the Middle Palaeolithic assemblages.

  Pleistocene occupations of Northern Khorasan: first evidence from Esfarayen Plain, north-eastern Iranian Plateau · 2026 · DOI

• the lack of systematic, specialised research in this region, - the study is based on field surveys and does not include excavations, - the study is limited to the Esfarayen Plain

  Pleistocene occupations of Northern Khorasan: first evidence from Esfarayen Plain, north-eastern Iranian Plateau · 2026 · DOI

• Low organic preservation - Uneven distribution of studied sites - Limited micromorphological features could be described for MAR-T4.M4 and MAR-T4.M1

  A high-resolution, multi-method palaeoenvironmental record from pan sediments at Maralaleng Pan, southern Kalahari basin · 2026 · DOI

• Further investigation of the palaeoenvironmental context of Maralaleng Pan - Integration of results with archaeological investigation of Maralaleng Pan

  A high-resolution, multi-method palaeoenvironmental record from pan sediments at Maralaleng Pan, southern Kalahari basin · 2026 · DOI

• The relationship between initial Homo sapiens dispersal from Africa to East Asia and the orbitally paced evolution of the Asian summer monsoon (ASM)—currently the largest monsoon system—remains underexplored due to lack of coordinated synthesis of both Asian paleoanthropological and paleoclimatic data.

  Concurrent Asian monsoon strengthening and early modern human dispersal to East Asia during the last interglacial · 2024 · DOI

• The evolution of bipedal gait is a key adaptive feature in hominids, 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 but the running abilities of early hominins have not been extensively studied.

  Running performance in Australopithecus afarensis · 2024 · DOI

• Juveniles remain a largely underexplored socio-biological category in Mesolithic mortuary research. There is a lack of understanding of how juveniles were perceived at different life stages.

  The Late Mesolithic juveniles of Yuzhniy Oleniy Ostrov, Russia: New insights from mortuary data · 2026 · DOI

• The simulation model is limited to a single foraging agent. The model does not account for other factors that may influence Acheulean handaxe patterning. The study is based on a simulated environment, which may not accurately reflect real-world conditions.

  E-lorgesailie: An Agent-Based Simulation Model of Acheulean Lithic Raw Material Procurement and Handaxe Deposition Patterns · 2026 · DOI

• There is a lack of understanding of the potential advantages of Acheulean handaxe stone caching. Prior work has not fully explored the potential significance of Acheulean handaxe patterning.

  E-lorgesailie: An Agent-Based Simulation Model of Acheulean Lithic Raw Material Procurement and Handaxe Deposition Patterns · 2026 · DOI

• The prevailing interpretative models characterize prehistoric occupations above 2,000 m.a.s.l. as ephemeral and low-intensity. There is a lack of evidence for intense prehistoric occupation in the Pyrenees at high altitudes.

  Beyond 2,000 meters, first evidence of intense prehistoric occupation in the Pyrenees · 2026 · DOI

• The paper notes that the genotype of individuals exhibiting the Inca bone is completely unknown. It also states that raw data accessibility is severely insufficient. The paper acknowledges that the tradition of not sharing morphological data is longstanding in paleoanthropology.

  On the Invalidity of the Hypothesis Using the Inca Bone as a Marker of Biological Continuity · 2026 · DOI

• The lack of systematic frequency data from African fossil hominins. The unclear genetic mechanism of the Inca bone. The need for rigorous testing of empirical basis for hypotheses in paleoanthropology.

  On the Invalidity of the Hypothesis Using the Inca Bone as a Marker of Biological Continuity · 2026 · DOI

• The study has a small sample size of six H. erectus specimens. The researchers note that further palaeoproteomic research is needed to explore the molecular diversity within H. erectus. The study does not provide a comprehensive analysis of the genetic makeup of H. erectus.

  Enamel proteins from six Homo erectus specimens across China · 2026 · DOI

• Further palaeoproteomic research is needed to explore the molecular diversity within H. erectus. The study suggests that future research could focus on analyzing ancient proteins from other H. erectus fossils. The researchers propose that future studies could investigate the genetic relationships between H. erectus and other human lineages.

  Enamel proteins from six Homo erectus specimens across China · 2026 · DOI

• Prior work has offered only fragmentary insights into past hydroclimatic and environmental conditions. There is a need for a comprehensive analysis of the paleolake Makgadikgadi and its significance for human evolution.

  A multiproxy sediment-core record of lake-level change in paleolake Makgadikgadi (82–21 ka) with implications for human occupation · 2026 · DOI

• The complexity of the sedimentary dynamics and occupation patterns at the cave. The limited availability of advanced methodologies for archaeological research. The need for systematic excavation and analysis of archaeological sites.

  Cave morphology and human-mediated sediment deposition: Late Pleistocene to Holocene evolution of the cave floor at Panga ya Saidi, coastal Kenya · 2026 · DOI

• The paper identifies a gap in understanding the history of palaeontology - The role of scientific nationalism and personal ambition is highlighted as an area for further study

  Chris Manias (ed.), Palaeontology in Public: Popular Science, Lost Creatures and Deep Time London: UCL Press, 2025. Pp. 364. ISBN 978-1-80008-583-1. £30.00 (paperback). · 2026 · DOI

• Systematic archaeological study of hunter-gatherer activity in the Bohemian Karst has been limited. There is a need for a well-preserved cultural sequence to understand settlement dynamics and adaptive strategies in Central Europe.

  The Na Skalici site near Měňany in the Bohemian Karst: Hunter-gatherer occupation during the Pleistocene/Holocene transition · 2026 · DOI

• There is a need to update the list of sites and provide a detailed overview of the research history, - There is a lack of systematic study of surface finds

  New research on the Gravettian site cluster of Grub-Kranawetberg, Austria: Research history, key findings and first results of fieldwork between 2021 and 2025 · 2026 · DOI

• The excavated assemblages in the Stillfried- Grub microregion point towards a Mid- Upper Palaeolithic or Gravettian (Grub- Kranawetberg I, Grub- Kranawetberg II, Ollersdorf- Heidenberg, and Stillfried- Steinschlägeratelier) and Early Upper Palaeo- lithic or Aurignacian (Ebenthal- Weintaläcker) (Cadastral par- cels 2229/2 and 2231) presence. To date, absolute- chronological ages are available only for Ollersdorf- Heidenberg and Grub- Kranawetberg I through the radiocarbon dating of high- quality conifer charcoals. For Grub- Kranawetberg II, charcoal identi- fication and the radiocarbon dating of charcoal samples is in progress, while both Stillfried- Steinschlägeratelier and Ebenthal- Weintaläcker (Cadastral parcels 2229/2 and 2231) remain without absolute chronological age estimations. Within Grub- Kranawetberg I, AH 4 and AH 3 of the ‘campsite’ area as well as the lower AH in the ‘bone accumulation’ area pro- vided ages congruent with the end of the Middle Gravettian and the onset of the Late Gravettian in the region, i.e. between 30,000 and 28,000 cal BP (e.g. Lengyel et al. 2026), while AH 2 is dated to 26,900–25,600 cal BP and, hence, is slightly younger (Tab. 2). The ages of AH Anna and AH Viola at Ollersdorf- Heidenberg (Bosch et al. 2025a) as well as from the rescue excavations in 1998 (Antl- Weiser 2008; see also Bosch et al. 2025a) point to the same age window between 30,000 and 28,000 cal BP. These ages overlap with the established chronostratigraphic position of Willendorf II, AH 9 (Austria) (Haesaerts et al. 1996; Nigst et al. 2014), the age range of Trenčianske Bohuslavice, Layer A2- 3 (Slo- vakia) (Wilczyński et al. 2020), Milovice IV 2021 excavation- AH II (Chlachula et al. 2025) and the Milovice IV 2009 excavation (Svoboda et al. 2011). According to the dated charcoal samples from the middle part of the brownish archaeological horizon, Pavlov VI is slightly older (Svoboda et al. 2009). The dating at the older excavations at Pavlov I, Dolní Věstonice I and II and the Moravany sites is more complex. Sites like Moravany nad Váhom- Podkovica (Hromadová et al. 2021) and Dolní Věstoni ce II, Unit A/K10 (Polanská, Novák 2014), seem to be younger.

  New research on the Gravettian site cluster of Grub-Kranawetberg, Austria: Research history, key findings and first results of fieldwork between 2021 and 2025 · 2026 · DOI

Most-cited papers in Pleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology

• The Osteological Paradox: Problems of Inferring Prehistoric Health from Skeletal Samples [and Comments and Reply] · Current Anthropology · 1992 · 1,154 citations
• The Origin of Modern Human Behavior · Current Anthropology · 2003 · 555 citations
• The Tortoise and the Hare · Current Anthropology · 2000 · 495 citations
• Systematic Butchery by Plio/Pleistocene Hominids at Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania [and Comments and Reply] · Current Anthropology · 1986 · 469 citations
• Biological Changes in Human Populations with Agriculture · Annual Review of Anthropology · 1995 · 462 citations
• The Origins of Plant Cultivation and Domestication in the New World Tropics · Current Anthropology · 2011 · 406 citations
• Coming into the Country: Early Paleoindian Hunting and Mobility · American Antiquity · 1988 · 386 citations
• Neanderthal Acculturation in Western Europe? A Critical Review of the Evidence and Its Interpretation · Current Anthropology · 1998 · 363 citations
• The Settlement of the Americas: A Comparison of the Linguistic, Dental, and Genetic Evidence [and Comments and Reply] · Current Anthropology · 1986 · 331 citations
• The Domestication of Animals · Journal of Anthropological Research · 2012 · 323 citations

Most recent work

• Proteomic analysis of dental enamel from 20 Homo naledi individuals shows no male markers · Cell · 2026
• Rapid growth in a Neandertal infant from Amud Cave in Israel · Current Biology · 2026
• Unexpected D-tour Ahead: Why the D-Statistic, applied to Humans, Measures Mutation Rate Variation not Neanderthal Introgression · bioRxiv · 2026
• The shared genomic history of Middle- to Late-Holocene populations from the Southern Cone of South America · Current Biology · 2026
• Deep coalescent history of the hominin lineage · bioRxiv · 2026
• Recovering signatures of archaic hominin introgression using ancestral recombination graphs · Science · 2026
• The Perks and Perils of Replicability · American Antiquity · 2026
• Ancient proteins identify various Denisovan remains from Southwest China · Nature · 2026
• Enamel proteins from six Homo erectus specimens across China · Nature · 2026
• Dental morphology and ancient human dispersals within and out of Africa · Journal of Human Evolution · 2026

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