Femoral diaphyseal histomorphometric age determinations for the Shanidar 3, 4, 5, and 6 Neandertals and Neandertal longevity.
Histomorphometric analysis of femoral diaphyseal fragments from the Shanidar 3, 4, 5, and 6 Neandertals provide age at death estimates of 41 (+/- 6.7), 36 (+/- 6.7), 40 (+/- 6.7), and 24 (+/- 6.7) years. These determinations are in agreement with previous macroscopic age assessments. Since the Shanidar 3, 4, and 5 (and slightly younger Shanidar 1) individuals are among the oldest known Neandertals, these age determinations suggest that significant postreproductive survival was rare among the Neandertals and a phenomenon primarily of anatomically modern humans.
D000328:Adult; D000365:Age Determination by Skeleton; D000818:Animals; D005269:Femur / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000473:pathology; D000882:Haplorhini / Q000254:growth & development*; D006801:Humans; D007493:Iraq; D008136:Longevity; D008875:Middle Aged; D010163:Paleontology