An examination of Homo naledi early juveniles recovered from the Rising Star cave system, South Africa

Figures & data

Figure 1. (A) Overview of the Rising Star cave System, showing the two main chamber locations of Homo naledi material; (B) Detail of the Dinaledi subsystem, showing the multiple fossil deposits (from Elliott et al. 2021).

Table 1. Early juvenile individuals from Rising Star localities U.W. 101, U.W. 102, and U.W. 110.

	Element	Depth	Area	Locality: U.W.
					Early Juvenile 1
					U.W. 101–145	Left M2	Surface to −40 mm	Pin 2/9	101
U.W. 101–285	Right M1	Surface to −40 mm	13	101
U.W. 101–505	Left M^2	Surface to −40 mm	4SE	101
U.W. 101–507	Right M2	Surface to −40 mm	4SE	101
U.W. 101–582	Left M1	Surface to −40 mm	4SH	101
U.W. 101–593	Right M^2	Surface to −40 mm	4SJ	101
Early Juvenile 2
U.W. 101–384	Right dm ^2	Level 1 (−41 to −70 mm)	2	101
U.W. 101–445	Left M^1	Level 2 (−71 to −100 mm)	2	101
U.W. 101–814	Left M1	Level 1 (−41 to −70 mm)	2	101
U.W. 101–886	Right C1	Level 1 (−41 to −70 mm)	2	101
U.W. 101–999	Right M^1	Level 1 (−41 to −70 mm)	2	101
U.W. 101–1063	Left M^2	Level 2 (−71 to −100 mm)	2	101
U.W. 101–1126	Left C1	Level 1 (−41 to −70 mm)	2	101
U.W. 101–1135	Right M^2	Level 2 (−71 to −100 mm)	2	101
Early Juvenile 3
U.W. 101–824	Left dc1	Surface to −40 mm	4SC	101
Early Juvenile 4
U.W. 101–1571	Left dc1	Surface to −40 mm	4SB	101
Early Juvenile 5
U.W. 102b–178	Left I2 crown	Surface/ex-situ	102b	102
U.W. 102b–437	Left dm2	Surface to −40 mm	102b	102
U.W. 102b–438	Right mandibular corpus fragment with immature germ RP4 in crypt	Surface to −40 mm	102b	102
U.W. 102b–502	Cranial fragments	Surface to −40 mm	102b	102
U.W. 102b–503	Right P^4 crown	Surface to −40 mm	102b	102
U.W. 102b–506	Cranial fragment	Surface to −40 mm	102b	102
U.W. 102b–507	Cranial fragment	Surface to −40 mm	102b	102
U.W. 102b–509	Cranial fragment	Surface to −40 mm	102b	102
U.W. 102b–511	Left C1 crown	Surface to −40 mm	102b	102
U.W. 102b–514	Cranial fragment	Surface to −40 mm	102b	102
U.W. 102b–515	Left I^2 crown	Surface to −40 mm	102b	102
U.W. 102b–516	Cranial fragment	Surface to −40 mm	102b	102
Early Juvenile 6
U.W. 110–1	Right dm^2	Surface	110	110
U.W. 110–2	Right P^4 germ	Surface	110	110
U.W. 110–3	Cranial fragment	Surface	110	110
U.W. 110–4	Cranial fragment	Surface	110	110
U.W. 110–5	Right RM^1	Surface	110	110
U.W. 110–6	Cranial fragments (5)	Surface	110	110
U.W. 110–7	Cranial fragment	Surface	110	110
U.W. 110–8	Cranial fragment	Surface	110	110
U.W. 110–9	Cranial fragment	Surface	110	110
U.W. 110–10	Cranial fragment	Surface	110	110
U.W. 110–11	Cranial fragment	Surface	110	110
U.W. 110–12	Cranial fragment	Surface	110	110
U.W. 110–13	Frontal bone and fragments (13)	Surface	110	110
U.W. 110–14	Right RI^1 germ	Surface	110	110
U.W. 110–15	Right RI^2 germ	Surface	110	110
U.W. 110–16	Cranial fragments (5)	Surface	110	110
U.W. 110–17	Left dm^2	Surface	110	110

Figure 2. E-JUV individual #1. Top row (left to right): Left maxillary M2; right M2. Bottom row: mandibular left M2, M1; right M1, M2.

Figure 3. Dinaledi Chamber (U.W. 101), with excavation areas noted by pin numbers. Area 2/9 (shaded grey) represents the primary excavation unit for the 2013–2014 field seasons.

Figure 4. E-JUV individual #2. Top row (left to right): Left maxillary M2, M1; right dm2, M1, M2. Bottom row: mandibular left M1.

Figure 5. Infant hemi-mandible U.W. 101–1400 (left). E-JUV individual #3 Ldc1 (right).

Figure 6. Pull-out section of Area 4, showing sub-divided surface collection areas.

Figure 7. E-JUV individual #4. U.W. 101–1571 (top) and occlusal of U.W. 101–1571 (left) and U.W. 101–824 (right).

Figure 8. E-JUV individual #5. From left to right (top): maxillary LI2, RP4; (bottom): mandibular LI2, LC, ldm2, partial mandible with RP4.

Figure 9. Lesedi Chamber (U.W. 102) in the Rising Star cave.

Figure 10. A (left). Schematic of the west wall region of the Lesedi Chamber, designated U.W. 102b showing Area 4, where U.W. 102b–178 was recovered and Area 2, where the remaining U.W. 102b hominin fossils were found. 10B (right). Image of west wall of Lesedi Chamber. White arrow points to where the U.W. 102b E-JUV hemi-mandible, teeth, and cranial fragments were recovered.

Figure 11. From right to left: Ldm2, Rdm2, RI1, RI2, RP4, RM1.

Figure 12. Sediment rise at back of passage U.W. 110 where elements of E-JUV #6 were recovered.

Table 2. Homo naledi individuals and their life stages by the fossil site area within the Rising Star cave system.

Individuals	Life stage	Describing publications	Other
Dinaledi Chamber U.W.101^1
DH1	Adult	Laird et al. (2017); Bolter et al. (2018)
DH2	Adult	Laird et al. (2017); Bolter et al. (2018)
DH3	Adult	Laird et al. (2017); Bolter et al. (2018)
DH4	Adult	Laird et al. (2017); Bolter et al. (2018)
DH5	Adult	Laird et al. (2017); Bolter et al. (2018)
DH6	Adult	Laird et al. (2017); Bolter et al. (2018)
DH7	Late JUV 1	Laird et al. (2017); Bolter et al. (2018, 2020)
DH8	Early JUV 1	Bolter et al. (2018); this paper
DH9	Infant	Bolter et al. (2018)
DH10	Infant	Bolter et al. (2018)
DH11	Sub-adult	Bolter et al. (2018)
DH12	Early JUV 2	Bolter et al. (2018); this paper
DH13	Early JUV 3	Bolter et al. (2018); this paper
DH14	Adult	Bolter et al. (2018)
DH15	Immature	Bolter et al. (2018)
DH16*	Late JUV 2	Bolter et al. (2020)
DH17	Infant	Cofran et al. (in prep)
DH18	Adult	Berger et al. (2023, pre-print)	Feature 1
DH19*	Late JUV 3	Berger et al. (2023, pre-print)	Feature 1
DH20*	Adult	Berger et al. (2023, pre-print)	Feature 2
DH21	Early JUV 4	this paper
Lesedi Chamber U.W. 102
LES1	Adult	Hawks et al. (2017)	U.W. 102a
LES2	Early JUV 5	Hawks et al. (2017); Cofran et al. (2022); this paper	U.W. 102a & 102b
LES3	Adult	Hawks et al. (2017)	U.W. 102c
Fossil Deposit U.W. 110
UW110-1	Early JUV 6	Brophy et al. (2021); this paper
Hill Antechamber U.W. 107
HA1	Late JUV	Berger et al. (2023, pre-print)
HA2	Late JUV	Berger et al. (2023, pre-print)
HA3	Late JUV–Adult	Berger et al. (2023, pre-print)
HA4	Infant?	Berger et al. (2023, pre-print)

¹ See also Berger et al. (2015), Dirks et al. (2015), and Delezene et al. (2023).

* Postcrania only.

Individuals and their life stage based on dentition unless otherwise noted.

Table 3. Relative wear patterns of deciduous first molar, canine ,and second molar.

E-JUV
	Deciduous first molar	Deciduous canine	Deciduous second molar	Permanent first molar
1	Hypothesised heavy	Hypothesised heavy	Hypothesised moderate	Unworn and minimal wear
2	Hypothesised heavy	Hypothesised heavy	Moderate	Minimal and light wear
3	Hypothesised heavy	Moderate	Hypothesised light	Hypothesised unworn or minimal wear
4	Hypothesised heavy	Moderate	Hypothesised light	Hypothesised unworn or minimal wear
5	Hypothesised heavy	Hypothesised heavy	Moderate	Hypothesised unworn, minimal or light wear
6	Hypothesised heavy	Hypothesised heavy	Moderate	Unworn

Wear patterns. Less wear from left to right in table represents relatively younger specimens.

Order of erupted teeth and sequence of wear pattern; Maxillary and mandibular teeth grouped together.

Wear categories: unworn, minimal, light, moderate, heavy (after Molnar 1971; Bailey et al. 2019; Brophy et al. 2021; Delezene et al. 2023). Italics are hypothesized wear stages of unrecovered dentition. Bolded are wear patterns of recovered dentition discussed in text

Elliott MC, Makhubela TV, Brophy JK, Churchill SE, Peixotto B, Feuerriegel EM, Morris H, Van Rooyen D, Ramalepa M, Tsikoane M, Kruger A, Spandler C, Kramers J, Roberts E, Dirks PHGM, Hawks J, Berger LR. 2021. Expanded explorations of the Dinaledi Subsystem, Rising Star Cave System, South Africa. Palaeoanthropology. 1:15−22. 10.48738/2021.iss1.68.

 Google Scholar

Laird MF, Schroeder L, Garvin HM, Scott JE, Dembo M, Radovčić D, Musiba CM, Ackermann RR, Schmid P, Hawks J, et al. 2017. The skull of Homo naledi. J Hum Evol. 104:100–123. doi: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2016.09.009.

 PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar

Bolter DR, Hawks J, Bogin B, Cameron N. 2018. Palaeodemographics of individuals in Dinaledi Chamber using dental remains. S Afr J Sci. 114(1/2):6. doi: 10.17159/sajs.2018/20170066.

 Web of Science ®Google Scholar

Bolter DR, Elliott MC, Hawks J, Berger LR. 2020. Immature remains and the first partial skeleton of a juvenile Homo naledi, a late Middle Pleistocene hominin from South Africa. PLoS One. 15(4):e0230440. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0230440.

 Web of Science ®Google Scholar

Berger LR, Makhubela T, Molopyane K, Kruger A, Randolph-Quinney P, Elliott M, Peixotto B, Fuentes A, Tafforeau P, Beyrand V, et al. 2023. Evidence for deliberate burial of the dead by Homo naledi. eLife. 12:RP89106. doi: 10.7554/eLife.89106.1.

 Google Scholar

Hawks J, Elliott M, Schmid P, Churchill SE, de Ruiter DJ, Roberts EM, Hilbert-Wolf H, Garvin HM, Williams SA, Delezene LK, et al. 2017. New fossil remains of Homo naledi from the Lesedi Chamber, South Africa. eLife. 6:e24232. doi: 10.7554/eLife.24232.

 PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar

Cofran Z, VanSickle C, Valenzuela R, García-Martínez D, Walker CS, Hawks J, Zipfel B, Williams SA, Berger LR. 2022. The immature Homo naledi ilium from the Lesedi Chamber, Rising Star Cave, South Africa. American Journal of Biological Anthropology. 179(1):3–17. doi: 10.1002/ajpa.24522.

 Google Scholar

Brophy JK, Elliott MC, De Ruiter DJ, Bolter DR, Churchill SE, Walker CS, Hawks J, Berger LR. 2021. Immature hominin craniodental remains from a new locality in the Rising Star cave system, South Africa. PaleoAnthropology. 1:1–14. 10.48738/2021.iss1.64.

 Google Scholar

Berger LR, Hawks J, de Ruiter DJ, Churchill SE, Schmid P, Delezene LK, Kivell TL, Garvin HM, Williams SA, DeSilva JM, et al. 2015. Homo naledi, a new species of the genus Homo from the Dinaledi Chamber, South Africa. eLife. 4:e09560. doi: 10.7554/eLife.09560.

 PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar

Dirks PHGM, Berger LR, Roberts EM, Kramers JD, Hawks J, Randolph-Quinney PS, Elliott M, Musiba CM, Churchill SE, de Ruiter DJ, et al. 2015. Geological and taphonomic context for the new hominin species Homo naledi from the Dinaledi Chamber, South Africa. eLife. 4:e09561. doi: 10.7554/eLife.09561.

 PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar

Delezene LK, Skinner MW, Bailey S, Brophy JK, Elliott ME, Gurtov A, Irish JD, Moggi-Cecchi J, de Ruiter DJ, Hawks J, et al. 2023. Descriptive catalog of Homo naledi dental remains from the 2013 to 2015 excavations of the Dinaledi Chamber, site U.W. 101, within the Rising Star cave system, South Africa. J Hum Evol. 180:103372. doi: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2023.103372.

 PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar

Molnar S. 1971. Human tooth wear, tooth function and cultural variability. Am J Phys Anthropol. 34(2):175–189. doi: 10.1002/ajpa.1330340204.

 PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar

Bailey SE, Brophy JK, Moggi-Cecchi J, Delezene LK. 2019. The deciduous dentition of Homo naledi: a comparative study. J Hum Evol. 136:1. doi: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2019.102655.

 Web of Science ®Google Scholar