morphological affinities of human skeletal remains from serra da capivara, northeastern brazil, and...

Morphological affinities of human

skeletal remains from Serra da

Capivara, northeastern Brazil, and

their implications for the origins of

Native Americans

W. A. Neves1, D. V. Bernardo1, N. Guidon2

1 Laboratório de Estudos Evolutivos Humanos –

Instituto de Biociências, Universidade de São Paulo,

Brasil

2 Fundação Museu do Homem Americano, Brasil

danvb@ib.usp.br

Our current perception of the

settlement of the Americas (last decades):

people was present in the New World prior to Clovis (Dillehay, 1997);

a Beringean coastal route was used by the newcomers instead of an

interior corridor (Dixon, 2001);

the lithic industry and subsistence patterns of the pioneers varied

considerably from region to region (Kipnis, 1998; Roosevelt et al., 2002;

Neves & Cornero, 1997);

the first Americans looked very different from late and nowadays

Native Americans (Neves & Pucciarelli, 1991).

Our current perception of the

settlement of the Americas (last decades):

people was present in the New World prior to Clovis (Dillehay, 1997);

a Beringean coastal route was used by the newcomers instead of an

interior corridor (Dixon, 2001);

the lithic industry and subsistence patterns of the pioneers varied

considerably from region to region (Kipnis, 1998; Roosevelt et al., 2002;

Neves & Cornero, 1997);

the first Americans looked very different from late and nowadays

Native Americans (Neves & Pucciarelli, 1991).

The first Americans looked very different from late and nowadays

Native Americans (Neves & Pucciarelli, 1991).

early Americans late/nowadays Americans

The first Americans looked very different from late and nowadays

Native Americans (Neves & Pucciarelli, 1991).

early Americans late/nowadays Americans

The first Americans looked very different from late and nowadays

Native Americans (Neves & Pucciarelli, 1991).

A

m

e

r

i

n

d

i

a

n

P

a

l

e

o

a

m

e

r

i

c

a

n

short

neurocrania

The first Americans looked very different from late and nowadays

Native Americans (Neves & Pucciarelli, 1991).

A

m

e

r

i

n

d

i

a

n

P

a

l

e

o

a

m

e

r

i

c

a

n

wild

neurocrania

The first Americans looked very different from late and nowadays

Native Americans (Neves & Pucciarelli, 1991).

A

m

e

r

i

n

d

i

a

n

P

a

l

e

o

a

m

e

r

i

c

a

n

high

orthognatic

broad

faces

The first Americans looked very different from late and nowadays

Native Americans (Neves & Pucciarelli, 1991).

A

m

e

r

i

n

d

i

a

n

P

a

l

e

o

a

m

e

r

i

c

a

n

long

neurocrania

The first Americans looked very different from late and nowadays

Native Americans (Neves & Pucciarelli, 1991).

A

m

e

r

i

n

d

i

a

n

P

a

l

e

o

a

m

e

r

i

c

a

n

narrow

neurocrania

The first Americans looked very different from late and nowadays

Native Americans (Neves & Pucciarelli, 1991).

A

m

e

r

i

n

d

i

a

n

P

a

l

e

o

a

m

e

r

i

c

a

n

low

prognatic

faces

The first Americans looked very different from late and nowadays

Native Americans (Neves & Pucciarelli, 1991).

DNA diversity of present Native

Americans suggests that the continent was

peopled by humans pertaining to only one

biological stock (Merriwether et al., 1995;

Bonatto and Salzano, 1997; Silva et al.,

2002; Fagundes et al., 2008; Goebel et al.,

2008) apparently supporting Hrdlíčka’s

original assertion.

Contrary to this view, Hrdlíčka’s original assertion:

All Native Americans can be

accommodated within one single

cranial morphological range

The first Americans looked very different from late and nowadays

Native Americans (Neves & Pucciarelli, 1991).

DNA diversity of present Native

Americans suggests that the continent

was peopled by humans pertaining to only

one biological stock (Merriwether et al.,

1995; Bonatto and Salzano, 1997; Silva et

al., 2002; Fagundes et al., 2008; Goebel et

al., 2008) apparently supporting

Hrdlíčka’s original assertion.

Contrary to this view, Hrdlíčka’s original assertion:

“All Native Americans can be

accommodated within one single

cranial morphological range”

Narrow and long neurocrania; prognatic, low faces;

relatively low and broad orbits and noses

Short and wide neurocrania; high, orthognatic and

broad faces; relatively high and narrow orbits and

noses

Narrow and long neurocrania; prognatic, low faces;

relatively low and broad orbits and noses

Short and wide neurocrania; high, orthognatic and

broad faces; relatively high and narrow orbits and

noses

Narrow and long neurocrania; prognatic, low faces;

relatively low and broad orbits and noses

Short and wide neurocrania; high, orthognatic and

broad faces; relatively high and narrow orbits and

noses

Paleoamerican

Amerindian

Narrow and long neurocrania; prognatic, low faces;

relatively low and broad orbits and noses

Short and wide neurocrania; high, orthognatic and

broad faces; relatively high and narrow orbits and

noses

Paleoamerican

Amerindian

Two different morphologies in the America!

Paleoamerican

Amerindian

Paleoamerican

Amerindian

Occurrence of Paleoamerican morphology in different regions

Here the cranial morphology

of five prehistoric humans skulls

from Serra da Capivara was

assessed under a comparative

perspective.

Serra da Capivara’s Sample

Serra da Capivara’s Sample

Toca do Coqueiro, ♂, ≈ 9.9 kyr Toca do Paraguaio, # 1 ♀, ≈ 8.6 kyr

# 2 ♂, ≈ 8.7 kyr

Toca do Gongo 2, ♀, ≈ 2.0 kyr Toca dos Cablocos, ♂, ≈ 0.45 kyr

Comparative Sample

12 worldwide series from Howell’s databank

Comparative Sample

12 worldwide series from Howell’s databank

plus

2 series from SouthAmerican Arcaic Period

(measured by Neves’s colleagues)

Final Sample

Methods

Multivariate comparisons by means of Principal Components Analysis

(PCA) & General Discriminant Analysis (GDA);

Males & Females analyzed together;

Double Z pooled standardization: all cases and variables were normalized;

Correction of sexual dimorfism and size variation.

Replacement of missing values by general means

Methods

61 cranial variables taken in accordance with Howells’s protocol.

-4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4

CP 1: 21,85%

-3

-2

-1

0

1

2

3

4C

P 2

: 1

3,2

2%

Results - PCA

-4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4

CP 1: 21,85%

-3

-2

-1

0

1

2

3

4C

P 2

: 1

3,2

2%

All sampled specimens without labels

-4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4

CP 1: 21,85%

-3

-2

-1

0

1

2

3

4C

P 2

: 1

3,2

2%

Asia M

Asia F

-4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4

CP 1: 21,85%

-3

-2

-1

0

1

2

3

4C

P 2

: 1

3,2

2%

Asia M

Asia F

Africa M

Africa F

-4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4

CP 1: 21,85%

-3

-2

-1

0

1

2

3

4C

P 2

: 1

3,2

2%

Asia M

Asia F

Africa M

Africa F

AustraloM M

AustraloM F

-4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4

CP 1: 21,85%

-3

-2

-1

0

1

2

3

4C

P 2

: 1

3,2

2%

Asia M

Asia F

Africa M

Africa F

AustraloM M

AustraloM F

América M

América F

-4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4

CP 1: 21,85%

-3

-2

-1

0

1

2

3

4

CP

2:

13

,22

%Asia M

Asia F

Africa M

Africa F

AustraloM M

AustraloM F

América M

América F

Sudam.Arc. M

Sudam.Arc. F

-4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4

CP 1: 21,85%

-3

-2

-1

0

1

2

3

4

CP

2:

13

,22

%Asia M

Asia F

Africa M

Africa F

AustraloM M

AustraloM F

América M

América F

Sudam.Arc. M

Sudam.Arc. F

L.Santa M

L.Santa F

-4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4

CP 1: 21,85%

-3

-2

-1

0

1

2

3

4C

P 2

: 1

3,2

2%

Asia M

Asia F

Africa M

Africa F

AustraloM M

AustraloM F

América M

América F

Sudam.Arc. M

Sudam.Arc. F

L.Santa M

L.Santa F

S.Capivara M

S.Capivara F

-4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4

CP 1: 21,85%

-3

-2

-1

0

1

2

3

4C

P 2

: 1

3,2

2%

-4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4

CP 1: 21,85%

-3

-2

-1

0

1

2

3

4C

P 2

: 1

3,2

2%

-4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4

CP 1: 21,85%

-3

-2

-1

0

1

2

3

4C

P 2

: 1

3,2

2%

Caboclos

Gongo 1

Paraguaio 2

Coqueiros

Paraguaio 1

América

AsiaAfrica

Sudamerica Arc. Paleoamericano

Australo-Melan.

-4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4

CP 1: 21,85%

-3

-2

-1

0

1

2

3

4

CP

2:

13

,22

%

Caboclos

Gongo 1

Paraguaio 2

Coqueiros

Paraguaio 1

América

AsiaAfrica

Sudamerica Arc. Paleoamericano

Australo-Melan.

The same morphological duality in New World’s samples;

Serra da Capivara’s sample occupying both extremes.

Results - GDA

Classification Matrix – 81,84% of correct classification

Conclusions

Dual differentiation of Serra da Capivara’s sample can not be attributed

to sexual dimorfism;

One group (in the right side of the PCA) represented by specimens from

the early Holocene and other group (in the left side of the PCA) by

specimens from middle and late Holocene*;

Absence of intermediary morphologies: same scenario observed in

others regions of South America;

Compability with the idea that New World was occupied by two

morphologically distinct populations. Sample from Toca do Paraguaio

show that both morphologies were present in the America between

8.0 – 9.0 kyr BP.

Acknowledgements

Fapesp – grant 2008/58729-8

CNPq – grant 301126-04.6

Christina Torres-Rouff

Maria Mercedes Martinez Okumura

Mariana Inglez

Mark Hubbe

Simone Silva Santana

Tatiana Ferreira de Almeida

Morphological affinities of human

skeletal remains from Serra da

Capivara, northeastern Brazil, and

their implications for the origins of

Native Americans

W. A. Neves1, D. V. Bernardo1, N. Guidon2

1 Laboratório de Estudos Evolutivos Humanos –

Instituto de Biociências, Universidade de São Paulo,

Brasil

2 Fundação Museu do Homem Americano, Brasil

danvb@ib.usp.br