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Discoveries from Ancient Bones Illuminate Neanderthal Elephant Hunting Techniques

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Elephant bones from Lehringen, Germany

Evidence of Ancient Human Butchery on Lehringen Elephant Bones

Image Credit: VOLKER_MINKUS

In the backroom of the distinguished Schöningen Research Museum in Germany, a collection of mismatched cardboard boxes reveals archaeological treasures. Discovered in Rehringen, a village located 150 kilometers away, these boxes hold invaluable artifacts.

In 1948, researchers uncovered 125,000-year-old bones from the Paleoloxodon antiquus species in the bed of an ancient lake at Rehringen. While elephant bones from this period are somewhat common, this particular find included a 2.3-meter-long spear lodged between the ribs, marking a significant archaeological milestone.

This yew spear, identified as the oldest complete spear ever discovered, provides powerful evidence suggesting that Neanderthals were skilled big game hunters rather than mere scavengers. However, this remarkable discovery faced challenges. Alexander Rosenbrock, a dedicated school principal and amateur archaeologist, led the excavation, but a series of complications arose during the retrieval of the bones.

After digging began, a portion of the bones was improperly extracted before Rosenbrock and his team could arrive. Some bones were even reported stolen, and without a camera, he struggled to document their positions accurately. This led to a lengthy seven-year legal battle over the remains. Ultimately, Rosenbrock secured rights to keep the artifacts in Verden, where they unfortunately faded into obscurity before his passing in the 1950s.

Over the following 75 years, doubts lingered regarding the circumstances surrounding Rehringen’s find. Were the spear and bones simply coincidentally located together? Despite two examinations, researchers initially found no clear signs of butchery on the elephant bones.

The 1948 Excavation of Rehringen

Credits: Archives of the Cultural Heritage Office of Lower Saxony

Fast forward to 2025, Ivo Verheijen, Schöningen’s resident bone expert, began a meticulous examination of the Rehringen findings.

“We were informed there were just a few boxes,” Verheijen explained. “Upon arrival at the museum to collect them, we discovered numerous boxes piled in the attic!”

The Schöningen Center, located merely 300 meters from an active archaeological excavation site, has been operational since the mid-1990s. This site is notably home to 10 spears, around 300,000 years old, along with the Clacton and Rehringen spears, forming part of a limited collection of discovered spears from the Paleolithic era.

In 2017, the Schöningen team further solidified their expertise when they discovered a complete elephant. As a result, Verheijen was well-versed in handling ancient elephant bones before teaming up with Rehringen.

As Verheijen rummaged through the boxes, he uncovered a freshwater shell along with an excavation label, which intriguingly turned out to be an old 50 million mark banknote from the post-World War I inflation period. “It’s fascinating to have such unique labels,” he remarked.

This initiative resembled a cold-case investigation for Verheijen and his team. Thankfully, the collection comprised not only bones of elephants and other species but also invaluable records of Rosenbrock’s pioneering work, preserved and shared by his daughter Waltraut Deibel-Rosenbrock after his passing.

Verheijen quickly deduced that the Lehringen elephant had been intentionally slaughtered. “I immediately identified some distinct cut marks,” he stated. “It’s astonishing that these were overlooked for so long.”

Evidence of Cut Marks on Elephant Bones

Image Credit: Ivo Verheijen

The elephant, likely a solitary male standing over 3.5 meters tall at shoulder height, may have also been over 30 years old. It is suspected that he had been slaughtered both externally and internally, with organs removed shortly after death. This implies that the elephant likely perished with the spear embedded in its side, making the proximity of the bones and weapon no mere coincidence.

Neanderthals utilized flint tools to extract what they could from the carcass, leaving behind the rest for scavengers. While some bones showed signs of butchering, remains of bears, beavers, and aurochs were also discovered, indicating that Neanderthals frequently hunted and processed animals in proximity to the lake.

Verheijen speculates that modern elephants tend to move toward water when injured. Thus, after sustaining an injury from a spear, the elephant probably made its way towards the lake. This suggests that multiple spears may have been involved, and the hunters pursued the wounded creature until it collapsed, potentially breaking one spear in the process. The investigation will continue as the team plans to re-examine the spear.

Even at this early stage, the project has painted a vivid picture of what could be one of the most detailed Neanderthal hunting scenes ever documented.

Verheijen is also working diligently to preserve the Rehringen bones for future display. “This site holds great importance in Neanderthal history in Germany,” he emphasizes. “For reasons unknown, it has been largely forgotten, and our goal is to restore its rightful recognition.”

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Uncovering Neanderthal Hunting Techniques: Insights from Ancient Elephant Bones

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Evidence of Neanderthal hunting: Elephant bones from Lehringen, Germany

Credit: VOLKER_MINKUS

In the back room of the modern Schöningen Research Museum in Germany, old cardboard boxes house a fascinating discovery: remnants from Rehringen, a village 150 kilometers away.

In 1948, 125,000-year-old Paleoloxodon antique bones were excavated from an ancient lake’s bed in Rehringen. While such bones are not uncommon, this particular set contained a remarkable 2.3-meter-long spear embedded between the ribs.

This yew spear is recognized as the oldest complete spear ever discovered. The Rehringen Spear stands as the only known spear found alongside the skeleton of an extinct species. Since Neanderthals were the only humans in Europe at the time, this spear provides critical evidence that they hunted large game rather than scavenged. This was a groundbreaking discovery.

However, challenges arose. The excavation led by Alexander Rosenbrock, a local school principal and amateur archaeologist, revealed that around half of the bones were removed before he, his daughter, and volunteers arrived at the scene.

By the time Rosenbrock reached the site, some bones had already been stolen, and without a camera, he couldn’t sketch the crucial positions of the bones and spear. A lengthy legal battle ensued over the discovery, ultimately allowing Rosenbrock to keep the findings in Verden, which contributed to their obscurity. Sadly, the teacher passed away in the 1950s without publishing his findings.

Over the next 75 years, skepticism around Rehringen emerged. Were the spear and bones truly found together, or was it mere coincidence? Researchers accessed the findings twice but concluded that the elephant bones lacked evidence of butchery.

Excavation at Rehringen, 1948

Credit: Archives of the Cultural Heritage Office of Lower Saxony

Fast forward to 2025. Ivo Verheijen, the bone expert at Schöningen, began investigating the Rehringen finds.

“We were informed of just a few boxes,” Verheijen noted. “But upon reaching the museum, we discovered truckloads stored in the attic.”

The Schöningen Center, located 300 meters from an active excavation site since the mid-1990s, previously uncovered 10 spears around 300,000 years old from a nearby quarry. The Rehringen spear, alongside the Clacton spear, represents one of the oldest weapons from the Paleolithic era.

In 2017, the Schöningen team made headlines by discovering a complete ancient elephant, granting Verheijen substantial experience with these bones before switching his focus to Rehringen.

As he examined the artifacts, Verheijen removed an old box containing a freshwater shell from Rehringen and metadata from the excavation. He revealed that the label was a 50-million-mark banknote from the post-World War I inflation era, pointing out, “It used to be printed on one side only.”

This project resembled a cold-case investigation for Verheijen and his team. Fortunately, the box contained not just elephant bones but also flint tools and documentation of Rosenbrock’s work, preserved by his daughter Waltraut Deibel-Rosenbrock after his passing.

It didn’t take long for Verheijen to determine that the Lehringen elephant was slaughtered. “I quickly spotted distinct cut marks,” he stated. “It’s surprising that they weren’t previously noted.”

Cut marks found on an elephant rib

Credit: Ivo Verheijen

The elephant’s remains belonged to a young male, over 3.5 meters tall at the shoulder. Verheijen noted that solitary males are often easier targets for hunters.

Examination revealed that not only had the animal been butchered externally, but internal organs had also been removed, indicating that it was freshly dead when Neanderthals approached. It is highly probable that it died with the spear embedded in its side, suggesting a direct correlation between the bones and the weapon found on-site.

Early humans utilized simple flint tools to extract as much as possible from the carcass, leaving behind bones for scavengers. Interestingly, not every bone displayed signs of butchery—bear, beaver, and aurochs remains were also present, indicating that Neanderthals regularly hunted near the lake.

Verheijen suggested that modern elephants often head towards water when injured. Therefore, after being speared, the elephant likely made its way toward the lake, where it may have been pursued until it collapsed. One spear ultimately broke underneath it, which could explain some of the scene’s findings. The research team plans to further analyze the spear.

Even in its initial phases, the project has already painted a vivid picture of Neanderthal hunting behavior.

Verheijen aims to preserve Rehringen’s bones for exhibition, emphasizing, “This site is among the most significant Neanderthal locations in Germany. Despite being previously overlooked, we are dedicated to giving it the recognition it deserves.”

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Discover How Elephant Trunks Use Touch Beyond Muscles and Nerves: Key Findings from Recent Study

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Keratin composites enable animals to walk with hooves, fly with wings, and sense their environment through their skin. Mammalian whiskers consist of elongated keratin rods attached to specialized tactile structures, enhancing the animal’s sensory perception. A recent study conducted by scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems aims to explore the structure, porosity, and stiffness of the whiskers found in the Asian elephant (Elephas maximus).

Schulz et al. investigated the whiskers of Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) to determine their geometric and mechanical adaptations for enhanced tactile sensitivity, which encodes contact location through vibrotactile signals. Image credit: Schulz et al., doi: 10.1126/science.adx8981.

Whiskers in mammals, resembling elongated keratin rods, serve as sophisticated sensory tools.

While the keratin material itself does not directly sense touch, whiskers are housed within hair follicles, surrounded by dense sensory neurons that translate subtle mechanical vibrations into nerve signals.

Previous research primarily focused on the shape and movement of whiskers, often assuming a uniform mechanical structure along their length.

However, emerging evidence suggests that the stiffness and internal composition of whiskers can differ from root to tip, highlighting the importance of material properties in tactile sensation.

Unlike many other mammals, elephants possess numerous immobile whiskers distributed over the thick skin of their highly skilled trunks.

Though these whiskers cannot move independently, they frequently interact with objects, enabling elephants to perform precise tasks, from delicate manipulations to food handling.

Given the immobility of their whiskers, Dr. Andrew Schultz and colleagues hypothesized that elephants rely on variations in the shape and material structure of their whiskers to enhance tactile perception.

The researchers employed techniques such as micro-CT imaging, electron microscopy, mechanical testing, and functional modeling to examine the shape, porosity, and stiffness of whiskers in both juvenile and adult Asian elephants.

Findings reveal that the material properties of elephant whiskers transition from thick, porous, and rigid roots to thin, dense, and soft tips.

Dr. Schultz noted, “Tapping the handrail with different parts of the whisker wand felt soft at the tip and sharp at the base. I could easily feel where contact occurred without even looking.”

These functional gradients significantly influence how mechanical vibrations are relayed to sensory neurons, enhancing the clarity and strength of tactile signals.

Specifically, the transition from a firm base to a softer tip amplifies signal power, aiding elephants in accurately determining contact locations along the whisker, which is crucial for navigation and fine manipulation.

In this manner, elephant whiskers exhibit a type of built-in or “physical” intelligence, optimizing sensation through intelligent material design without needing active movement.

This exciting discovery is driving the authors’ efforts to apply natural insights into advancements in robotics and intelligent systems.

“Bio-inspired sensors that replicate elephant-like stiffness gradients could provide precise information with minimal computational cost, simply by leveraging intelligent material design,” Dr. Schultz stated.

The team’s groundbreaking research was published in the Journal on February 12, 2026, in Science.

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Andrew K. Schultz et al. 2026. Functional gradients drive tactile sensation in elephant whiskers. Science 391 (6786): 712-718; doi: 10.1126/science.adx8981

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First sighting of Asian elephant burying carcass captured

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Elephant pulling a dead calf in a tea plantation in northern Bengal, India

Parveen Kaswan and Akashdeep Roy

Asian elephants intentionally burying the bodies of their calves has been documented in the first scientific report of such behavior in this species.

Five calves were found buried in a drainage ditch on a tea plantation in the northern state of Bengal, India, with their feet and legs sticking out of the ground.

Footprints and scat of various sizes indicate that members of the herd of all ages contributed to each burial. A night watchman at the complex reported hearing loud elephant cries, sometimes lasting 30 to 40 minutes, before the herd left the area.

Akashdeep Roy Researchers at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research in Pune and Parveen Kaswan from the Indian Forest Service suggest that the sound of these bugles may represent mourning, and that during burials the herds are “helping and caring”. It suggests that the person exhibited a certain behavior.

“The burial of a calf is an extremely rare event in nature,” says Roy.

They were surprised to find the calf buried foot-deep, but if the herd had buried each calf together, this would be the most accessible position to place the carcass in the drain. , says Roy. For elephants, who are social animals, burying their calves' heads may be the most important thing they do, he says.

A baby elephant buried in a tea garden with its feet sticking out of the ground

Parveen Kaswan and Akashdeep Roy

The calf's body was later exhumed and examined. Their ages ranged from three months to one year old, and many were malnourished and suffering from infections. Bruises along each calf's back suggest that they were dragged or carried long distances to the burial site.

African bush elephant (african loxodonta) have been observed covering carcasses with plants and returning to the location later. However, the Asian elephant (maximum elephas) In this study, we typically avoided returning to the burial site and used an alternative route instead.

“These observations provide impressive evidence of the social complexity of elephants,” he says. Chase LaDue At the Oklahoma City Zoo and Botanical Garden. “Some people have suggested that elephants seem to behave in a unique way towards their deceased relatives. [but] This paper is the first to describe what appears to be a methodical and planned burial of an elephant calf after it was taken to a burial site. ”

Still, Professor Radu said: “We must be careful how we interpret these results, especially since the mental and emotional lives of elephants remain largely a mystery to us.” There is.

He is not convinced that the position of the calf was intentional. “I could imagine an elephant pushing a dead calf into a narrow ditch, and given its awkward shape and weight distribution, the calf would land on its back with its legs in the air,” he says. “And because the depth of the trench is shallow, the feet are not buried, but this is not due to intentional burying of the head, but due to the unique topography of the burial site.”

The land where elephants once roamed freely is shrinking as humans expand, especially in India, the world's most populous country. Only about 22 percent of the land used by elephants is within protected areas.

“Understanding how elephants behave and respond to rapid changes in human-dominated landscapes may help develop conservation strategies that promote human-elephant coexistence.” Mr. Radu says.

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