Uploaded April 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
What caused the extinction of Neanderthals 40,000 years ago?
An analysis of Neanderthal DNA has helped piece together the story of many millennia of hard times that finally led to the demise of our ancient human relatives.
Faced with a cooling climate, their population shrank and they wound up confined to what is now south-west France. Later, the climate warmed and the Neanderthals began roaming more widely. But most of their genetic diversity had been lost, so even widely dispersed groups had very similar DNA.
This situation – small, isolated groups with little genetic diversity – may have contributed to their eventual extinction.
Read more: newscientist.com/article/2520319-genetic-clues-tell-the-story-of-neanderthals-decline
What caused the extinction of Neanderthals 40,000 years ago?
An analysis of Neanderthal DNA has helped piece together the story of many millennia of hard times that finally led to the demise of our ancient human relatives.
Faced with a cooling climate, their population shrank and they wound up confined to what is now south-west France. Later, the climate warmed and the Neanderthals began roaming more widely. But most of their genetic diversity had been lost, so even widely dispersed groups had very similar DNA.
This situation – small, isolated groups with little genetic diversity – may have contributed to their eventual extinction.
Read more: newscientist.com/article/2520319-genetic-clues-tell-the-story-of-neanderthals-decline
