Magnetostratigraphic dating of the hominin occupation of Bailong Cave, central China

Yanfen Kong,Junyi Ge,Chenglong Deng,Liang Yi,Lu Sun,Xiujie Wu,Shuwen Pei,Rixiang Zhu,Wu Liu

doi:10.1038/s41598-018-28065-x

Abstract

Intermontane basins in the southern piedmont of the Qinling Mountains are important sources of information on hominin occupation and settlement, and provide an excellent opportunity to study early human evolution and behavioral adaptation. Here, we present the results of a detailed magnetostratigraphic investigation of the sedimentary sequence of hominin-bearing Bailong Cave in Yunxi Basin, central China. Correlation to the geomagnetic polarity time scale was achieved using previously published biostratigraphy, 26Al/10Be burial dating, and coupled electron spin resonance (ESR) and U-series dating. The Bailong Cave hominin-bearing layer is dated to the early Brunhes Chron, close to the Matuyama-Brunhes geomagnetic reversal at 0.78 Ma. Our findings, coupled with other records, indicate the flourishing of early humans in mainland East Asia during the Mid-Pleistocene climate transition (MPT). This suggests that early humans were adapted to diverse and variable environments over a broad latitudinal range during the MPT, from temperate northern China to subtropical southern China.

Highlights

The chronology of human evolution in different paleoclimatic and paleoenvironmental settings is an intriguing topic in the study of human origins[1,2,3,4]
We present new magnetostratigraphic dating results for the Bailong Cave sedimentary sequence containing hominin teeth[22,23,24,25,26,27], which were assigned to Homo erectus[25,27]
We established the chronology of the Bailong Cave hominin-bearing sequence by combining the previously published biochronology26, 26Al/10Be burial dating[39] and coupled electron spin resonance (ESR)/U-series dating results[40] with our new magnetochronology

Summary

Introduction

The chronology of human evolution in different paleoclimatic and paleoenvironmental settings is an intriguing topic in the study of human origins[1,2,3,4]. Since the Homo erectus remains were excavated at the Zhoukoudian site in Beijing during the 1920s and 1930s5,6, numerous hominin/Paleolithic localities were discovered and reported in China, which offer an excellent opportunity to study early human evolution. During the past three decades considerable progress has been made toward dating the stratigraphic record that contains Paleolithic artifacts or hominin fossils in China[1,7,8,9,10,11], significantly contributing to our understanding of early human occupation in mainland East Asia. The Qinling Mountains and adjacent areas in central China are a key area for studying human occupation in East Asia and for exploring the hominin migration route between southern and northern China[16,17,18,19,20]. Combined with a previously published chronology of early humans in mainland East Asia (Table 1), we attempt to provide new insights into early human colonization and adaptability to diverse and variable environments during the Mid-Pleistocene climate transition

Methods

Results

Conclusion