Neanderthals, Early Humans Ate Maggots for Survival

New research, including a study in Science Advances by Melanie Beasley and John Speth, challenges the view that Neanderthals were strict hypercarnivores, proposing that their high nitrogen isotope levels may be explained by consuming maggots from rotting meat. Experimental and ethnographic data show that maggot-infested meat provided essential fats and nitrogen, nutrients difficult to obtain from lean meat alone. This explanation is supported by evidence from modern and historic hunter-gatherers who also consume maggots as a nutrient source. The findings help resolve why Neanderthal bones contain unusually high nitrogen isotope ratios, levels unsustainable on meat alone. The research further suggests that both Neanderthals and early Homo sapiens incorporated putrid meat and maggots into their diets, revising previous views of their dietary habits. These insights highlight the adaptability and resourcefulness of prehistoric humans.