---
title: "Neanderthals did not disappear without a trace: Chris Stringer reveals the truth about the extinction of other human species"
description: "British scientist Chris Stringer refutes the myth that Homo sapiens simply wiped out other humans. It turns out that climate played a key role, and Neanderthal genes still live on in us! 🧬🦴"
date: 2026-07-27T05:14:00.000Z
lang: en
url: https://xab.info/en/posts/neanderthals-did-not-disappear-without-a-trace-chris-stringer-reveals-the-truth-about-the-extinction-of-other-human-species
tags: [chris-stringer, homo-sapiens, neanderthal, denisovan, evolution]
publisher: "XAB.info"
---

# Neanderthals did not disappear without a trace: Chris Stringer reveals the truth about the extinction of other human species

![Replica of a Neanderthal skull, illustrating the topic of the extinction of ancient human species](https://xab.info/media/2026/07/27/neandertalcy-ne-ischizli-bessledno-kriss-stringer-raskryl-pravdu-o-vymiranii-drugih-vidov-ludey/neandertalcy-ne-ischizli-bessledno-kriss-stringer-raskryl-pravdu-o-vymiranii-drugih-vidov-ludey-1.webp)

Modern society often mistakenly believes that Homo sapiens was the only human species to ever inhabit the Earth. However, the reality turns out to be much more diverse and dramatic. As recently as 300,000 years ago, our planet was simultaneously inhabited by at least seven different representatives of the genus Homo.

RBC-Ukraine reports this citing leading British scientist Chris Stringer. The expert emphasizes that at the moment Homo sapiens appeared in Africa, the world was already densely populated by other species, each possessing unique adaptations to their environment.

### The myth of the total destruction of competitors

The mass migration of our ancestors out of Africa, which began approximately 60,000 years ago, coincided in time with the gradual disappearance of all other human species. For a long time, the scientific community was dominated by the hypothesis that Homo sapiens physically destroyed or completely displaced competitors, using their intellectual and technological advantage.

However, Chris Stringer, Head of Human Evolution Research at the Natural History Museum in London, asserts that the real picture is much more complex and does not boil down to simple aggression.

### Climate against Neanderthals

Neanderthals were a highly developed and resilient species, capable of surviving in harsh conditions. By the time Homo sapiens arrived, they were already suffering serious consequences from global climate changes, which significantly weakened their populations.

According to Stringer, our ancestors may have merely accelerated their decline by winning the struggle for limited resources in the face of a changing climate, rather than being the sole cause of their demise.

### Genetic immortality

Regarding the reasons for the disappearance of other species, such as Denisovans, Homo floresiensis, or Homo erectus, scientists currently lack sufficient fossil data and DNA samples to draw definitive conclusions. Nevertheless, Professor Stringer notes an important fact: Neanderthals and Denisovans cannot be considered completely extinct.

For millennia, Homo sapiens not only coexisted alongside them but also entered into interbreeding relationships. As a result, traces of their genomes have been preserved in the modern human population. If all surviving DNA fragments from living inhabitants of the planet were gathered, it would be possible to reconstruct approximately 40 percent of the Neanderthal genome, even in the absence of their fossil remains.