Skip to content News Anthropology Denisovans inhabited Taiwan, new fossil evidence suggests The fossil jaw highlights the mystery of Denisovans’ place in hominid evolution An analysis of proteins in this jaw, found by fishermen off Taiwan’s coast, indicate that the fossil comes from a Stone Age population called Denisovans. Yousuke Kaifu By Bruce Bower 4 hours ago A fossil jaw originally netted by fishermen off the ocean floor near Taiwan’s west coast belonged to a member of a mysterious hominid population known as Denisovans, scientists report in the April 11 Science. Their new findings indicate that Denisovans, known from their ancient DNA and a handful of bones found at a couple of Asian sites, spread over a larger area than previously thought. DNA from fragmentary bones and teeth excavated in Siberia’s Denisova Cave first identified Denisovans as close relatives of Neandertals in 2012. Researchers determined that Denisovans visited the Siberian site from around 300,000 to 50,000 years ago. Although their evolutionary status remains unclear, Denisovans mated with Neandertals, and some modern East Asian populations have inherited Denisovan genes as a result of interbreeding with ancient Homo sapiens. Sign up for our newsletter We summarize the week's science breakthroughs every Thursday.