Neanderthal diet study shows they were more than just ‘primitive cave dwellers’

Finding is ‘extra nail to the coffin’ of belief that ancient human ancestors lived off large herbivores

Neanderthals in present-day Portugal harvested sea creatures more than 90,000 years ago and used cooking methods that would give them “meaningful nutritional benefits”, reveal the findings of a new study.

The research, published in the journal Frontiers in Environmental Archaeology, analysed prehistoric deposits of shells and bones unearthed in a cave just south of present-day Lisbon.

The findings from the study have provided further proof that the ancient human ancestors were more than just cave dwellers, according to scientists, including Mariana Nabais from the Catalan Institute of Human Paleoecology and Social Evolution.