Humans in Africa’s wet tropical forests 150 thousand years ago

Eslem Ben Arous (), James A. Blinkhorn (), Sarah Elliott, Christopher A. Kiahtipes, Charles D. N’zi, Mark D. Bateman, Mathieu Duval, Patrick Roberts, Robert Patalano, Alexander F. Blackwood, Khady Niang, Eugénie Affoua Kouamé, Edith Lebato, Emily Hallett, Jacopo N. Cerasoni, Erin Scott, Jana Ilgner, Maria Jesús Alonso Escarza, Francois Yodé Guédé and Eleanor M. L. Scerri ()
Additional contact information
Eslem Ben Arous: Centro Nacional de Investigación sobre la Evolución Humana (CENIEH)
James A. Blinkhorn: Max Planck Institute of Geoanthropology (MPI-GEA)
Sarah Elliott: Bournemouth University
Christopher A. Kiahtipes: University of South Florida
Charles D. N’zi: Institut d’Histoire, d’Art et d’Archéologie Africains (IHAAA)
Mark D. Bateman: University of Sheffield
Mathieu Duval: Centro Nacional de Investigación sobre la Evolución Humana (CENIEH)
Patrick Roberts: Max Planck Institute of Geoanthropology (MPI-GEA)
Robert Patalano: Max Planck Institute of Geoanthropology (MPI-GEA)
Alexander F. Blackwood: Max Planck Institute of Geoanthropology (MPI-GEA)
Khady Niang: Max Planck Institute of Geoanthropology (MPI-GEA)
Eugénie Affoua Kouamé: Institut des Sciences Anthropologiques de Développement (ISAD)
Edith Lebato: Institut d’Histoire, d’Art et d’Archéologie Africains (IHAAA)
Emily Hallett: Loyola University Chicago
Jacopo N. Cerasoni: Loyola University Chicago
Erin Scott: Max Planck Institute of Geoanthropology (MPI-GEA)
Jana Ilgner: Max Planck Institute of Geoanthropology (MPI-GEA)
Maria Jesús Alonso Escarza: Centro Nacional de Investigación sobre la Evolución Humana (CENIEH)
Francois Yodé Guédé: Institut d’Histoire, d’Art et d’Archéologie Africains (IHAAA)
Eleanor M. L. Scerri: Max Planck Institute of Geoanthropology (MPI-GEA)

Nature, 2025, vol. 640, issue 8058, 402-407

Abstract: Abstract Humans emerged across Africa shortly before 300 thousand years ago (ka)1–3. Although this pan-African evolutionary process implicates diverse environments in the human story, the role of tropical forests remains poorly understood. Here we report a clear association between late Middle Pleistocene material culture and a wet tropical forest in southern Côte d’Ivoire, a region of present-day rainforest. Twinned optically stimulated luminescence and electron spin resonance dating methods constrain the onset of human occupations at Bété I to around 150 ka, linking them with Homo sapiens. Plant wax biomarker, stable isotope, phytolith and pollen analyses of associated sediments all point to a wet forest environment. The results represent the oldest yet known clear association between humans and this habitat type. The secure attribution of stone tool assemblages with the wet forest environment demonstrates that Africa’s forests were not a major ecological barrier for H. sapiens as early as around 150 ka.

Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1038/s41586-025-08613-y

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