14,000-Year-Old Fossilized Poop Among Oldest Traces of Humans in North America

Archaeologists have unearthed evidence of pre-Clovis populations in the Americas at multiple sites, leading them to believe that humans have been here much earlier than previously thought. And in 2007, a team of working in Oregon’s Paisley Caves discovered some of the most solid evidence yet: a cache of ancient human dung.

Researchers used radiocarbon dating to estimate that the dried-out scat, preserved in the arid climate of the caves, was more than 14,000 years old—old enough to upend the “Clovis First” timeline (of 13,000 years ago). According to the Times, the makeup of the Paisley Cave dung can also provide clues to their diet. For instance, the coprolite samples showed that early humans ate seeds, plants and rodents in addition to the occasional mammoth.

“The question of when and how people first settled the Americas has been a subject of intense debate,” Lisa-Marie Shillito says in a University of Newcastle statement. “By using a different approach, we have been able to demonstrate that there were pre-Clovis populations present in the area of the Great Basin and resolve this debate once and for all.”

In a controversial study published just last week, University of Exeter archaeologist Ciprian Ardelean published more evidence of pre-Clovis populations. Ardelean and his team used radiocarbon dating to show that stone artifacts found in Mexico’s Chiquihuite cave were possibly more than 26,000 years old, as Brian Handwerk reports for Smithsonian magazine.

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/14000-year-old-poop-among-oldest-traces-humans-north-america-180975426/