Video: Inside Homo naledi’s cave

The fossil material was recovered in two expeditions conducted in November 2013 and March 2014, dubbed the Rising Star Expeditions. This 2013 picture shows the Rising Star Expedition camp. Picture: John Hawks, Wits University

The fossil material was recovered in two expeditions conducted in November 2013 and March 2014, dubbed the Rising Star Expeditions. This 2013 picture shows the Rising Star Expedition camp. Picture: John Hawks, Wits University

Published Sep 10, 2015

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Scientists have announced the discovery of a new species of human relative in a remote cave chamber in the Cradle of Humankind World Heritage Site.

Besides shedding light on the origins and diversity of our genus, the new species, Homo naledi, appears to have intentionally deposited bodies of its dead in a remote cave chamber, a behaviour previously thought limited to humans.

H. naledi was named after the Rising Star cave, where the initial discovery was made in 2013. See inside the cave.

IOL

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