Ancient Cave Skeleton Sheds Light on Early American Ancestry

Divers transport the Hoyo Negro skull to an underwater turntable so that it can be photographed in order to create a 3-D model. The project was supported by the National Geographic Society. Photo Credit: Paul Nicklen/National Geographic. An ancient human skeleton discovered in an underwater Mexican cave has answered a crucial question about early Americans: How they came to look so different from their Siberian ancestors. Genetic studies have pointed to a Siberian ancestry for modern Native Americans. Most researchers believe the first Americans (Paleoamericans) migrated from northeast Asia via Beringia, the now-submerged land bridge between present-day Siberia and Alaska, some 18,000-26,000 years ago. But the facial features of the oldest American skeletons don’t look much like those of modern Native Americans. This has inspired a number of controversial counter-theories claiming the Americas were first settled by people from elsewhere in Eurasia. Now, the near-complete skeleton of a teenaged girl, believed to be 12,000-13,000 years old, is helping settle the debate. Her skull, with its narrow face, prominent forehead and wide-set eyes, is similar to that of other skulls considered to be Paleoamerican — but she shares a genetic signature with modern Native Americans.