A new set of hominin fossils from Grotte à Hominidés in southwestern Casablanca, Morocco, dated to about 773,000 years ago, suggests an African origin for early Homo sapiens lineages during a critical divergence period.

The fossils exhibit a mosaic of primitive and evolved traits, lacking a defined chin like Homo sapiens but with teeth and dental features similar to both Homo sapiens and Neanderthals, indicating a close yet not fully modern ancestry.

Experts emphasize the importance of African fossils for understanding human evolution and acknowledge the ongoing uncertainty about the precise nature and identity of the last common ancestor of the major human lineages.

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Source and publication: Nature, 2025, DOI: 10.1038/s41586-025-09914-y.

Most fossils were excavated in 2008–2009 but dated recently, with the layer aligning to a major polar reversal to anchor the specimens in a well-defined time window.

The cave site evidence shows it was dangerous, inhabited by carnivores like hyenas, with bite marks on a leg bone reflecting a harsh ancient environment.

Researchers note carnivore activity at the site, supported by predator bite marks and signs of carnivore presence in the cave environment.

Among the most informative remains are a nearly complete child mandible and two adult jawbones, one more robust, suggesting possible sex differences.

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Questions remain about whether these hominins were predators or victims of scavenging, with the cause of death not determinable from the available evidence.

Hominin evidence from ThI-GH includes a gracile adult mandible and a larger mandible, plus vertebrae and teeth, indicating a small-bodied individual with a mosaic of archaic and derived features.