The Middle Pleistocene (now renamed Chibanian and dated to 774,000-129,000 years ago) is important because it saw the rise of our own species (Homo sapiens) in Africa, our closest relatives, and the Neanderthals (Homo neanderthalensis) in Europe. However, human evolution during this age is poorly understood, a problem which paleoanthropologists call ‘the muddle in the middle.’ The announcement of Homo bodoensis hopes to bring some clarity to this puzzling, but important chapter in human evolution.

 

The new name is based on a reassessment of existing fossils from Africa and Eurasia from this time period. Traditionally, these fossils have been variably assigned to either Homo heidelbergensis or Homo rhodesiensis, both of which carried multiple, often contradictory definitions. ‘Talking about human evolution during this time period became impossible due to the lack of proper terminology that acknowledges human geographic variation’ according to Roksandic, lead author on the study.