If anyone has ever called you a Neanderthal, you probably figured out pretty quickly that it wasn’t meant to be a compliment. What is a Neanderthal? Neanderthals (Homo neanderthalis) are close relatives of Homo sapiens, which are otherwise known as human beings. Even if you’re not a scientist, you can tell we are closely related by the fact that we both carry the name Homo. Neanderthals looked a lot like human beings, but they were actually a totally unique species.

Neanderthals lived in the northern hemisphere, in Asia and Europe. They became extinct 20 000 to 30 000 years ago. Because they lived in cold regions of the world, Neanderthals had a very recognizable characteristic. They had an especially large nose that helped them warm the cold northern air as they breathed. In addition to having a honking hooter, they were short by today’s human standards, and very muscular in build. Scientists were able to determine their structure from remains that they have studied. For a while that was the limit of their knowledge. But now, thanks to advances in know-how and technology, they are learning more.

How are scientists doing this? They are studying the Neanderthal’s genes. Genes are made up of DNA, the hereditary material of the body. They contain special codes that determine our very nature. It is genes that determine whether we have blue or brown eyes, big or small feet, and possibly even if we like to put butter on our popcorn (yup, it’s true.)

Gene research is telling scientists some interesting things about Neanderthals. For example, scientists have discovered, much to their surprise, that many Neanderthals had red hair! Scientists have found a Neanderthal gene that is responsible for both fair skin and red hair. This is common combination in northern Europeans. There is less sunlight in the northern regions, so prehistoric Neanderthals and humans alike would have benefited from having light-colored skin. Why? Before the day of vitamin D fortified milk, people had to rely on the Sun for their vitamin D (the body makes vitamin D when exposed to sunlight), and vitamin D is essential for life. The less color or pigment there is in a person’s skin, the more sunlight they can absorb to make this unique vitamin. So it turns out that red hair and fair skin helped Neanderthals survive, at least for a while. As to why they died out, well that’s for another blog post!