Denisovan leg bones found in Taiwan reveal giant hominins

Fossil leg bones recovered from the seabed of Taiwan's Penghu Channel have been identified as Denisovan, revealing that this extinct hominin species reached towering sizes around 45,000 years ago. The specimens, named Penghu 2 and Penghu 3, were found by local fishermen and are now housed in Taiwan's National Museum of Natural Sciences Source: El Confidencial.

The discovery

Analysis of the femur and tibia, which lacked preserved DNA, relied on paleoproteomics—the study of ancient proteins. Researchers extracted collagen from the bones and identified a specific amino acid variant (COL1A2 R996K) characteristic of Denisovans, confirmed by phylogenetic trees built from 15 proteins Source: La Vanguardia.

Size estimates

Penghu 2 is estimated to have stood about 180 cm and weighed 83 kg, while Penghu 3 reached roughly 190 cm and 91 kg—comparable to the tallest modern humans Source: El Confidencial. These dimensions make them among the largest leg bones known from Pleistocene Homo Source: La Vanguardia.

Implications

The findings challenge the Bergmann's rule, which predicts larger body sizes in colder climates, as contemporary Homo sapiens in the same region were not as massive Source: El Confidencial. Researchers suggest the large size may reflect adaptation to hunting or genetic exchange with Homo sapiens Source: La Vanguardia. The study is still pending peer review Source: La Vanguardia.