Press releases (archive)

Researchers find that present-day Mariana Islanders’ ancestry is linked to the Philippines

Heidi Colleran, leader of the Max Planck Research Group BirthRites - Cultures of Reproduction at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary…

The Max-Planck-Institute in Leipzig is part of a new platform for online child studies

The QUANTA project is the first concerted effort to address the ambitious questions of when, why, and how tools for quantification emerged and evolved

Scientists identify 34,000-year-old Early East Asian of mixed Eurasian descent

Integration of contributors promotes the quantity and quality of data

A segment of DNA that causes their carriers to have an up to three times higher risk of developing severe Covid-19 is inherited from Neandertals

The award for outstanding research contributions and achievements concerning human origins and evolution will be presented on September 25, 2020 by…

Neandertals have adopted male sex chromosome from modern humans

Male chimpanzees who lose their mother early in life are less competitive and have fewer offspring than sons who continue to live with their mothers

Both historical and recent variation in ecological and environmental conditions are associated with larger behavioural repertoires in wild chimpanzees

An 80,000-year-old Neanderthal reveals cultural and genetic affinities between Poland and the Northern Caucasus

Evidence-based conservation is key to curb primate population declines

People who inherited a special ion channel from Neandertals experience more pain

Disease prevention and protection of species require differentiated strategies

When informing about a threat territorial chimpanzees are more motivated to cooperate than less territorial bonobos

Researchers are studying the Neandertal DNA found in modern humans using stem cells and organoids

Neandertals may have lived in very small groups, and genes expressed in the basal ganglia of their brains may have changed

MPI-EVA in Leipzig and MPI-SHH in Jena enter into a major reorganization – Leipzig to be retained as hub for ancient genetics, Jena to create novel…

High levels of emotionality and conscientiousness are indicators for stockpiling behavior

Female chimpanzees are also important in helping to win and keep a territory

Neandertal progesterone receptor has a favourable effect on fertility

Chimpanzees need more than five years to acquire key skills

Chimpanzee groups each have their own unique termite fishing cultures

Major cultural transition in Europe took place earlier than previously thought

Researchers genotyped more than 20 ethnic groups in Vietnam, encompassing all five major language families in Mainland Southeast Asia

Researchers analyzed the genomes of more than 27.000 Icelanders to find out which parts of our genomes contain Neandertal DNA

For many weeks now, social interactions have been prohibited in many countries, which has affected many people. Roman Wittig of the Max Planck…

New fossils indicate that Homo erectus existed earlier than previously thought, at a time when also Australopithecus and Paranthropus were around…

Three million year old brain imprints show that Australopithecus afarensis infants may have had a long dependence on caregivers

A new study has found evidence that human ancestors as recent as two million years ago may have regularly climbed trees

The ratio of special zinc isotopes in dental enamel provides information about the diet of mammals in prehistoric times

Brain imprints on cranial bones from great apes and humans refute the long-held notion that the human pattern of brain asymmetry is unique

Geneticist Svante Pääbo honoured for his work into human origins

Mothers may be shaping pre-adult growth and offspring muscle mass even without direct provisioning

Female chimpanzees’ reproductive success decreases in times of strong territorial conflict with other groups

Accumulative stone throwing chimpanzees like tree species with a resonating timbre

New study from Leipzig provides insights into the first steps

Monkeys cooperatively share information about the presence of snakes with group members

Humans’ ability to read dogs’ facial expressions is not innate

First "ManyPrimates" study published

Considered an oil palm pest, macaques can in fact diminish a more severe pest: rats

Cell atlas of great ape forebrain development illuminates dynamic gene-regulatory features that are unique to humans

Males can thus distinguish between cycle phases

Female gorillas must balance the reproductive costs of staying with or leaving an older male

New insights help to explain why same-sex sexual interactions are so important for female bonobos

Researchers discover remarkably complete 3.8 million-year-old cranium of Australopithecus anamensis at Woranso-Mille in Ethiopia

How does the playing behaviour of children influence their prosocial behaviour?

Sometimes recording what animals do not do or fail to find can lead to revealing insights into their expectations, and thus cognition

Long-term study of Amazonian community shows the interconnectedness of cooperation and status hierarchy