Human ancestors were near extinction some 900,000 years ago, says study

This illustration shows part of the formula that scientists used to determine the population of the ancestors of Homo sapiens some 900,000 years ago. © Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, CAS

A study published on Thursday claims that human ancestors teetered on the brink of extinction over 900,000 years ago. Based on a new method of analysis, scientists found that our ancestors survived in a group of less than 1,300 individuals.

While most people nowadays worry about the overpopulation of planet Earth, which is currently hosting more than 8 billion individuals, our ancestors were facing a very different problem.