Homo luzonensis

Homo luzonensis, also locally called "Ubag" after a mythical caveman, is an extinct, possibly pygmy, species of archaic human from the Late Pleistocene of Luzon, the Philippines. Their remains, teeth and phalanges, are known only from Callao Cave in the northern part of the island dating to before 50,000 years ago. They were initially identified as belonging to modern humans in 2010, but in 2019, after the discovery of more specimens, they were placed into a new species based on the presence of a wide range of traits similar to modern humans as well as to Australopithecus and early Homo. Their ancestors, who may have been Asian H. erectus or some other even earlier Homo, would have needed to have made a sea crossing of several miles at minimum to reach the island. Human presence on Luzon dates to at latest 771,000 to 631,000 years ago. The inhabitants of the cave dragged in mainly Philippine deer carcasses, and used tools for butchering. The first remains were discovered in 2007 in Callao Cave in Northern Luzon, the Philippines. In 2010, French anthropologist Florent Détroit and Filipino archaeologist Armand Mijares and colleagues identified them as belonging to modern humans. In 2019, after the discovery of 12 new specimens and based on the apparent presence of both modern-humanlike and primitive Australopithecus-like features, they reassigned the remains (and other hominin findings from the cave) to a new species, Homo luzonensis, the specific name deriving from the name of the island. The holotype, CCH6, comprises the upper right premolars and molars. The paratypes are: CCH1, a right third metatarsal bone of the foot; CCH2 and CCH5, two phalanges of the fingers; CCH3 and CCH4, two phalanges of the foot; CCH4, a left premolar; and CCH9, a right third molar. CCH7 represents a juvenile femoral shaft. These represent at least three individuals. The specimens are kept at the National Museum of the Philippines, Manila. The exact taxonomic placement of H. luzonensis is unknown, and, like for other tropical hominins, DNA extraction failed.