Neanderthals were a subspecies of early humans that lived in Europe and western Asia from around 400,000 to 40,000 years ago. They were well-adapted to cold environments, with stocky bodies, barrel chests, and strong limbs that allowed them to store body heat. Neanderthals hunted large game like mammoths and lived in shelters constructed from animal bones. While they were physically robust with large brains, modern humans may have outcompeted Neanderthals for resources. The last Neanderthals disappeared around 25,000 years ago, possibly due to climate change or interbreeding with anatomically modern humans, as DNA evidence confirms some mixing occurred.

1. Survival of the Fittest
Social Studies for 8th E.G.B.
Teacher: Mauricio Torres

2. Neanderthals
The Neanderthals were a different sub-species of homo
sapiens.
The few remains found of them, are all around 30,000
years old, but tools and artifacts belonging to them have
been found to be 24,000 years old. This means they
survived at least that far.

3. Tough guys
Evidence has shown that
Neanderthals were better adapted
to cold weather. Their barrel chests
and stocky limbs stored body heat
better than homo sapiens.
They were largely carnivorous. 80%
of their diet was protein based,
modern humans, on average only
base a 12%.
But they also cooked some
vegetables!
They were alpha predators.
Sites built of mammoth bones have
been found, showing they had a
capacity to fabricate shelter.

4. Larger and stronger
They had bigger
brains.
They were more
robust than modern
humans.
They were a bit
shorter.
They had strong
limbs.

5. Skills
They were a strong
highly adapted
species:
They had shown
early signs of cultural
development.
Developed tools on
their own.
Controlled fire.
Built shelter.
Used clothes.
Hunted in groups.

6. Timeline
1829: Neanderthal skulls were discovered in Engis, in
present-day Belgium.
1856: Johann Karl Fuhlrott first recognized the fossil called
"Neanderthal man", discovered in Neanderthal, a valley
near Mettmann in what is now North Rhine-Westphalia,
Germany.
2010: Comparison of Neanderthal DNA with modern humans
from Africa and Eurasia shows that 1–4% of modern non-
African human DNA might come from the Neanderthals!

7. When and where did they
live?
They lived during the last Ice Age.
They lived between Western Europe (including
modern day England) and as far as the Indus
River.
No remains have been found in Africa.

8. Extinction
• The last recording of Neanderthals is 25,000 years old.
• Three main hypothesis explain their disappearance:
Competition with humans
probably contributed to
Neanderthal extinction, when
homo sapiens moved into
their habitats.
Violent climate changes that
were too fast for them to
adapt to.
Interbreeding: they were
absorbed into the homo
sapiens population (Genetic
research has confirmed that
some mixture took place).

9. Bibliography
Sources at: Wikipedia. (n.d.). Neanderthal.
(Wikipedia) Retrieved May 1, 2012, from
Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neanderthal
Ellis, E. G., & Esler, A. (2009). World History. (P.
Hall, Ed.) Upper Saddle River, New Jersey, US:
Pearson Education INC.
Human Origins: Neanderthal [Motion Picture].
Images taken from Google.