The Neanderthal holds much fascination for anthropologists as it has been one of the few hominid man-like species to have been in direct contact to the modern man, homo sapiens. How it lived is still being studied today to give clues as to why the line did not continue. One of the interesting things about it is that Neanderthals ate vegetables even in cold climates, as archeologists get hint from dental plaque.
The Neanderthals lived alongside with homo sapiens for a time. There is even some speculation that they have interbred with homo sapiens. Much like homo sapiens, it had a diverse menu. In warmer regions, it ate plants as well as animals. Studies of Neanderthal in the Mediterranean showed that it subsisted on plants and animals.
Paleoanthropologists though have thought that Neanderthals in colder regions did not eat plants. This is particularly true in areas that didn't have trees, such as the Mammoth Steppe. It has been assumed that the Neanderthals there ate mostly animals.
However that might not be the entire story, as Leiden archeologist Robert Power said. He said that the Mammoth Steppe has not been fully understood as the area had disappeared a long time ago. Its flora and fauna are not fully known. There might be evidence though that Neanderthals there have eaten plants as well.
To know if Neanderthals from that region did eat plants, researchers have studied their dental plaque. Through microscopy it has been found that they did eat plants, based on 48 teeth samples that have been studied, The University of Leiden's site reports. On the teeth are microbotanical plant particles, which showed that Neanderthals even in that region ate plants.
Through the dental plaque Power also tried to reconstruct their diet, according to Science Daily. The nearest study to this would be the chimpanzee's diet. A number of chimpanzees have been observed for 20 years, which gave some idea on what Neanderthal diet must be like.
Through the study it has been affirmed that Neanderthals ate vegetables, even in cold regions. This adds mystery then as to why they have disappeared while homo sapiens thrived. The Neanderthals and another unknown hominid species might also have interbred with humans, as DNA evidence shows.
