# Once upon a time, two early humans of different ancestry met at a cave in Russia. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 23, 2018, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-upon-a-time-two-early-humans-of-different-ancestry-met-at-a-cave-in-russia/820117 "2018-08-23T16:24:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2018, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-upon-a-time-two-early-humans-of-different-ancestry-met-at-a-cave-in-russia/820117/1 "2018-08-23T16:24:08Z")
“Some 50,000 years later, scientists have confirmed that they had a daughter together.” [https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.bbc.com/news/amp/science-environment-45271644](https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.bbc.com/news/amp/science-environment-45271644) I think this is pretty cool. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2018, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-upon-a-time-two-early-humans-of-different-ancestry-met-at-a-cave-in-russia/820117/2 "2018-08-23T17:13:50Z")
So do I. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2018, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-upon-a-time-two-early-humans-of-different-ancestry-met-at-a-cave-in-russia/820117/3 "2018-08-23T17:23:58Z")
Here is an [NPR story.](https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2018/08/22/640627452/ancient-bone-reveals-swingin-sex-lives-of-neanderthals) ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2018, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-upon-a-time-two-early-humans-of-different-ancestry-met-at-a-cave-in-russia/820117/4 "2018-08-23T17:34:31Z")
It is probably not unique; although there are only currently three defined species of archaic humans that overlapped in time with _Homo sapiens_, the dearth of the fossil and genetic record likely means that there were more distinct populations of genus _Homo_ that migrated out of Africa and across Eurasia in waves. There are gene variations in the genome of populations of unknown origin (with too much variability and too widely distributed through the gene pool to have occurred by genetic drift in the period that population was geographically isolated from other human groups), which suggests intermixing between several other archaic human populations. Human genetic variability as a whole is rather low due to the fact that isolated migratory groups tend to be dominated by founder effects, and this intermixing may have been a way of keeping those migratory groups viable, e.g protection from native parasites or bacteria. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![Two\_Many\_Cats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Two\_Many\_Cats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2018, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-upon-a-time-two-early-humans-of-different-ancestry-met-at-a-cave-in-russia/820117/5 "2018-08-23T20:35:00Z")
Lute Music Playing: _“…A time for us…Someday will beeee…”_