Archaeology and Human Evolution

Archaeology is the study of human behavior through material culture, the things we rely on for survival. Behavioral change was likely a driving factor in the evolution of our species, and archaeology therefore plays a central role in understanding human origins from the beginning of the known archaeological record some 2.5 million years ago. From its origins to subsequent diversification, the material record of human behavioral innovation provides an essential learning tool for understanding human behavioral diversity and also serves as a gateway to critical thinking in education.     

The zooarchaeology and paleoecology of early hominin scavenging

Questions about the timing, frequency, resource yield, and behavioral and biological implications of large animal carcass acquisition by early hominins have been a part of the “hunting‐scavenging debate” for decades. This article presents a brief outline of this debate, reviews the zooarchaeological and modern ecological evidence for a possible scavenging niche among the earliest animal tissue‐consuming hominins (pre‐2.0 Ma), revisits some of the questions that this debate has generated, and outlines some ways to explore answers to those questions with evidence from the archaeological record.