Neanderthals left an impact on their environment, having cleared part of a forest in Germany  either through their fire use or tool production 125,000 years ago.

The conclusion was reached by archaeologists from Leiden University who examined Neumark-Nord an archaeological site about 20 miles west-of Leipzig.

Evidence from pollen deposits indicates the flora at the lakeside site changed from closed forest to open vegetation for some 2,000 years of Neanderthal occupation.

These findings highlight that humans were not the only members of Homo genus who had an important influence on their environment, according to the team.

Neanderthals left an impact on their environment, having cleared part of a forest in Germany — either through their fire use or tool production — 125,000 years ago. Pictured: in this documentary reconstructions, Neanderthals by a lake can been seen using fire and tools

Neanderthals left an impact on their environment, having cleared part of a forest in Germany — either through their fire use or tool production — 125,000 years ago. This documentary reconstruction shows Neanderthals at a lake using tools and fire.

This is the conclusion of archaeologists led from Leiden University, who studied an archaeological site called Neumark-Nord (pictured) some 20 miles west of Leipzig

Archaeologists from Leiden University came to this conclusion after studying an archeological site known as Neumark-Nord (20 miles west of Leipzig).

NEANDERTHALS AT NEUMARK–NORD 

In 1985, the first evidence of Neanderthal activity was discovered at Neumark-Nord. Since then, the site has been the focus of many excavations.

According to some legends, the hominins occupied this lakeside location for two millennia.

Finds at the site, Dr Roebroeks told the Wall Street Journal, have included ‘tens and thousands of stone artefacts, hundreds of thousands of bone fragments [and]The bones of hundreds of animal carcasses.

Additionally, archaeologists found evidence of frequent fire-use at the site. This includes charcoal, as well as burnt seeds and leaves.

Despite the Neanderthals’ significant impact at Neumark-Nord, the ancient lakeside would have been far from what we might recognise as a village settlement.

In fact, Dr Roebroeks explained, the hominins there may have been less mobile but would have still remained hunter–gathers who travelled from place-to-place during the Last Interglacial period.

During the Eemian period (also known as the ‘Last Interglacial’ and which spanned from 130,000–115,000 years ago) the area around Leipzig was dotted with small lakes left behind after the retreat of the glaciers from the northern European plain.

Hominins also had the opportunity to leave behind the ice sheets, and excavations in Neumark-Nord have shown evidence of about 2,000 years worth of Neanderthal occupation.

In their study, Wil Roebroeks and colleagues analysed paleoenvironmental data including samples of pollen and charcoal from sediments at both Neumark-Nord and two similarly-aged former lakesides elsewhere in the eastern Harz mountains.

These sites — Gröbern and Grabschütz — are similar to Neumark-Nord, but have yielded only the slightest traces of former Neanderthal occupation in the form of a handful of stone artefacts at the former and 13 flint flakes at the latter.

The researchers found that the composition and proportion of pollen at these baseline sites were indicative of a closed, forested region, unlike at Neumark-Nord, where the data pointed to an environment characterised by open vegetation.

“Initially, a forest area. [Neumark-Nord] became open when Neanderthals arrived and stayed open for about 2,000 years,’ Professor Roebroeks explained to the Wall Street Journal, describing the forest clearing as a ‘hominin ecological footprint’.

According to the team, the vegetation at Neumark-Nord was initially dominated by birch and pines trees, but this soon gave in to much smaller plants as the hominins returned to the lakeside setting.

‘Upon their leaving, the forest closed in again,’ Professor Roebroeks added. 

Because the sites were all in the same region, it was possible to exclude the possibility of other environmental factors such as temperature or precipitation differences.

Neumark-Nord was also found to have sediments with higher amounts of charcoal. This sign of fire matches previous findings of wood and burnt seeds. 

The researchers believe that the Neanderthals activities — which would have included hunting, tool production, animal processing and building campfires — led to the deforestation of the lakeside at Neumark-Nord.

However, it is unclear if their intention was to create a new landscape.

This may contradict previous research that had considered the Last Interglacial to be a kind of reference period when the landscape was assumed to have been unaffected by human intervention. 

Evidence of Neanderthal activity at Neumark-Nord was first uncovered in 1985, with the site the subject of numerous excavations since. Finds at the site, Dr Roebroeks told the Wall Street Journal, have included 'tens and thousands of stone artefacts [as pictured], hundreds of thousands of bone fragments [and] the remains of many hundreds of butchered animals'

In 1985, evidence of Neanderthal activity was found at Neumark-Nord. The site has since been subject to numerous excavations. The Wall Street Journal reported that Dr Roebroeks discovered ‘tens of thousands’ of stone artifacts on the site. [as pictured]There are hundreds of thousands upon hundreds of thousands bone fragments [and]The remains of hundreds of animals that were killed.

In their study, Wil Roebroeks and colleagues analysed paleoenvironmental data — including samples of pollen and charcoal — from sediments at both Neumark-Nord and two similarly-aged former lakesides elsewhere in the eastern Harz mountains. Pictured: spores of stoneworts, a type of algae, and the charred remains of seeds from the Neumark-Nord site

In their study, Wil Roebroeks and colleagues analysed paleoenvironmental data — including samples of pollen and charcoal — from sediments at both Neumark-Nord and two similarly-aged former lakesides elsewhere in the eastern Harz mountains. Pictured: spores of stoneworts, a type of algae, and the charred remains of seeds from the Neumark-Nord site

The researchers found that the composition and proportion of pollen at these baseline sites were indicative of a closed, forested region — unlike at Neumark-Nord, where the data pointed to an environment characterised by open vegetation. Pictured: the pollen (centre-left) and charcoal (centre-right) concentrations with depth in the sediments at Neumark-Nord

The researchers found that the composition and proportion of pollen at these baseline sites were indicative of a closed, forested region — unlike at Neumark-Nord, where the data pointed to an environment characterised by open vegetation. Pictured: the pollen (centre-left) and charcoal (centre-right) concentrations with depth in the sediments at Neumark-Nord

‘Modern humans today are impacting ecosystems on a global scale,’ University of Tübingen paleoanthropologist Katerina Harvati, who was not involved in the present study, told the Wall Street Journal.

The action is having severe consequences on biodiversity and habitats throughout the world, she said.

She said that the findings of this new study are pointing to an important impact of human activity on ecosystems, even for small groups of hunter-gatherer people, long before the advent of Homo sapiens.

Science Advances has published all of the findings.

The researchers believe that the Neanderthals activities — which would have included hunting, tool production, animal processing and building campfires — led to the deforestation of the lakeside at Neumark-Nord (pictured). Whether or not they specifically intended to open up the landscape or merely a by-product of their lifestyle, however, remains unclear

The researchers believe that the Neanderthals activities — which would have included hunting, tool production, animal processing and building campfires — led to the deforestation of the lakeside at Neumark-Nord (pictured). It is not clear if they intended to open the landscape up or just a side effect of their lifestyle.

Neanderthals were a distant relative of the modern human race, but they went extinct around 40,000 years ago

Neanderthals, a human close ancestor mysteriously disappeared around 40,000 years back.

This species co-existed with humans in Africa for many millennia, before they moved to Europe 300,000.

Later, they were joined by human beings who arrived in Eurasia 48,000 years after their arrival.  

The Neanderthals were a cousin species of humans but not a direct ancestor - the two species split from a common ancestor -  that perished around 50,000 years ago. Pictured is a Neanderthal museum exhibit

The Neanderthals were a cousin species of humans but not a direct ancestor – the two species split from a common ancestor –  that perished around 50,000 years ago. A Neanderthal museum exhibit is shown here

They were thought to have been the first ‘cavemen’ and had a history of being dumb-witted, brutish, in comparison to modern people.

However, in recent years and particularly over the past decade it’s become more obvious that we have been selling Neanderthals short.

There is a growing evidence base that suggests a more complex and diverse type of caveman than was previously believed.

The possibility exists that Neanderthals may have told their stories, buried and painted the bodies of their loved ones, as well as interbreeding with human beings.   

They created body art using pigments, beads and other materials. The earliest human art was probably predated by the Neanderthal Cave Art (and symbolism in Spain) of around 20,000 years.

It is believed that they hunted and did some fishing on the land. After the triumph of Homo Sapiens in Europe, however, they became extinct around 40,000 Years ago.