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Natural History: ​Humans Mastered Africa’s Toughest Terrains Before Venturing Into the World

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9 July 2025
By James Hamilton

Humans learned to thrive in African environments before their successful expansion into Eurasia roughly 50,000 years ago. Photo credit: Ondrej Pelanek and Martin Pelanek

​Long before the historic “Out of Africa” migration that gave rise to all non-African people alive today, early humans were already learning to survive in Africa’s most challenging environments - from dense forests to harsh deserts. A new international study reveals that this growing adaptability played a crucial role in the eventual global spread of our species.
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Researchers found that around 70,000 years ago - well before the major migration into Eurasia some 50,000 years ago - human populations began dramatically expanding the types of habitats they could thrive in. This ecological flexibility, the study argues, helped pave the way for the first truly successful dispersal out of Africa.

The findings come from a collaboration between scientists at the Max Planck Institute of Geoanthropology, the University of Cambridge, the Natural History Museum, and Loyola University Chicago. Using a massive dataset of archaeological sites and environmental records from the last 120,000 years, the team applied ecological modeling techniques to understand how humans interacted with and adapted to changing habitats over time.

“Our results showed that humans started venturing into much more diverse environments, including tropical forests and arid deserts, beginning around 70,000 years ago,” said Dr. Michela Leonardi of the Natural History Museum.

Professor Andrea Manica of the University of Cambridge added: “Earlier attempts to leave Africa likely happened during wetter periods, when ‘green corridors’ opened through the desert belt. But the big, successful migration occurred during a drier, more difficult period. The key difference? Humans had become better at handling tough conditions.”

The study challenges popular explanations for why only the later migration out of Africa succeeded. Previous theories pointed to advanced tools or genetic advantages from interbreeding with other hominins, but those factors don't align with the archaeological record. Instead, the researchers found that the ability to adapt to a wide range of habitats, a shift that began inside Africa, may have been the real game-changer.

“This growing ecological range likely stemmed from increased cultural exchange and mobility,” said Dr. Emily Hallett of Loyola University Chicago. “That helped break down geographic barriers and encouraged greater innovation.”

Professor Eleanor Scerri, of the Max Planck Institute and a senior author of the study, summed it up: “Unlike earlier human populations, the groups that left Africa around 60,000–50,000 years ago were shaped by their experience with extreme and variable environments. That gave them the resilience they needed to survive and thrive across the globe.”
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The research was funded by the Max Planck Society, the European Research Council, and the Leverhulme Trust.

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