analysis of the discoveries at the Rising Cave

analysis of the discoveries at the Rising Cave

The Rising Star Cave is found in the Malmani dolomites, fifty kilometers from Johannesburg, South Africa. Although amateur cavers were known to visit the chamber periodically for many years in the past, the 2013 excursion formally investigated the system for remains of early hominins where were found in the Dinaledi Chamber (Powell 1). The recovery of the fossils was publicized widely in 2013 and 2014. This paper will provide an analysis of the discoveries at the Rising Cave.

Discussion

The fossils that were found in the cave included skulls, ribs, teeth, jaws, bones of feet, spine, and hand (Stinger 2). The fossils were assigned to a new human species named homo naledi. The defining characteristics of homo naledi include curved fingers, a small brain size, trunk and hip joints similar to the species Homo habilis. The teeth were simple and small and increased in size towards the tooth row’s back — the hands, feet, legs, and wrists resembling modern humans’ (Stinger 1). Generally, the species’ stature and body mass are the same as those of small-bodied humans. However, homo naledi is different from other species for two reasons. The first one is the species’ skeletal biology, which shows a combination of derived traits such as the wrists and primitive characteristics such as the small brain size. The second is that the species shows evidence of complex ritualistic behavior, which involved the intentional disposal of the dead (Randolf 1). The context in which the fossils were found pertains to an anomalous depositional environment. The fossils were recovered from unconsolidated soft sediments inside the karstic system (Randolf 2). The only evidence found associated with the fossil was that of body disposal as there is no evidence of a practical vertical passage into the Dinaledi Chamber from the surface where the fossils were found.

The dating of the fossils of homo naledi implied that, while the human species was evolving from their known large-brained ancestors, the homo naledi, a small-brained lineage, was living and lingering on from an earlier period. As such, the dating implies that the age of the fossils coincides with the early Middle Stone Age, living alongside Homo sapiens, despite the two lineages being very different. The researchers were surprised because, contrary to the expectation of such a recent date, the species displayed distinctively primitive characteristics including the curved fingers, small brain size, as well as the form of the hip joint, trunk, and shoulder (Barass 5).

The researchers think that the fossils ended up in the cave after they were disposed of as dead bodies. They, therefore, conclude that the species may have practiced the behavior of disposing of dead bodies as a means of predator avoidance (Randolf 3). As such, the act points at the possibility of ritualistic habituated or repeated patterns of behavior by the hominins. The evidence for this theory is the lack of transportation of the fossils to the cave by flowing water, carnivores, or gravity, indicating the remains were deposited there intentionally (Randolf 3; Madison 18). However, the theory is controversial due to the small brain size and primitive morphology of the hominin. These characteristics imply that it was unlikely that the species was capable of the complex behavior of burying or disposing of dead bodies. I, therefore, do not agree with this interpretation as I do not believe that the species brain capacity was developed enough to contemplate the disposal of dead bodies.

In conclusion, the species, homo naledi, was found in the Rising Star Cave in South Africa. The homo naledi is different from other species as it manifests a combination of derived and primitive traits. The species are also believed to have practiced the behavior of body disposal. The researchers were surprised by the recent dating as it coincides with Middle Stone Age, yet the characteristics of the two species do not match.