Rising Star Homo naledi fossils appear all female, fueling debate over burial practices
A paleoproteomics study of 20 Homo naledi teeth from the Rising Star cave in South Africa found all samples belonged to females, suggesting a female-biased representation at the site. The team used amelogenin protein markers to infer sex, but the absence of a Y-chromosome signal could also reflect a mutation or deletion of the AMELY gene. The fossils, dated roughly 335,000–241,000 years old, raise questions about sex-segregated mortuary practices or other biases, though researchers caution that a single-site, small-sample finding is not definitive and alternative explanations remain possible.
