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Study Finds All Homo naledi Specimens Female, Implies Burial Ritual

6/26/2026

Summary

Study Finds Females

June 24, 2026 cell study found every Homo naledi specimen from Rising Star Cave was female.
Enamel analysis of 23 teeth from 20 individuals detected AMELX but no AMELY.
Modeling indicated a 0.0000954 % (?1-in-1 million) chance of missing AMELY in a 20-specimen sample, leading author Palesa Madupe and Lee Berger to suggest a sex-specific burial.
Co-author John Hawks noted the site predates any known Neanderthal or modern-human burial, reviving debate over burial practices.

Summary

Scientists Find Link

Proteomic analysis found a variant in Homo naledi also present in Paranthropus robustus, indicating a genetic link.
The 300,000-year-old fossils were uncovered in 2013 by Lee Berger of University of the Witwatersrand in Rising Star cave.
Anatomical study shows the specimens had small braincases but faces, hands and lower limbs resemble humans.
Researchers note that sampling is nascent and that critics doubt burial practices could be sophisticated given small brains.

Summary

Scientists Preserve Teeth

Researchers applied a new non-destructive tooth-sampling method that extracts chemical signatures without cutting enamel, preserving the Homo naledi specimens.
The method was applied to about 1,500 fragments from at least 20 Homo naledi individuals in the Rising Star chamber.
Lee Berger, National Geographic Explorer in Residence, says the approach could reshape paleontological studies for decades.

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Study Finds Females

June 24, 2026 cell study found every Homo naledi specimen from Rising Star Cave was female.
Enamel analysis of 23 teeth from 20 individuals detected AMELX but no AMELY.
Modeling indicated a 0.0000954 % (?1-in-1 million) chance of missing AMELY in a 20-specimen sample, leading author Palesa Madupe and Lee Berger to suggest a sex-specific burial.
Co-author John Hawks noted the site predates any known Neanderthal or modern-human burial, reviving debate over burial practices.

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