NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! Elephants are widely worshiped by many people today, but a recent study suggests that early humans slaughtered them for survival almost 2 million years ago. A group of international researchers found what they describe as “the earliest direct evidence of proboscidean butchery,” including a newly identified elephant slaughter site, according to a paper published this spring in the journal eLife. Modern elephants are the only proboscideans alive today, a group that once included woolly mammoths and mastodons. The animal’s bones belonged to Elephas recki, an extinct species of elephant. ANCIENT HUMANS HUNTED AND EATED SHARKS 7,000 YEARS AGO, SHOWS DISCOVERY OF BURIAL SITE The research centers at Olduvai Gorge, a site on the Serengeti plains of northern Tanzania, known for important discoveries of early human fossils and tools. At the site, excavators found stone tools along with ancient elephant bones, and the recent paper, written by archaeologists and paleoanthropologists, suggests that the remains were probably deliberately butchered by early human ancestors. Ancient elephant remains found in Tanzania (not pictured) point to systematic processing by early human ancestors. (Universal Images Group via Getty Images) The bones date back to about 1.8 million years ago, during the Early Pleistocene epoch. CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE TO OUR LIFESTYLE NEWSLETTER Although researchers have seen evidence of humans hunting large megafauna in later periods, the discovery suggests that early humans processed elephant carcasses more systematically. “The surplus food generated by exploiting some of these animals would have been a significant advantage.” The study also says that the ability of early humans to slaughter large animals “represents a unique evolutionary trajectory, with no direct modern analogue.” The discovery centers on Olduvai Gorge, pictured above, a site long known for its important finds of early human tools and fossils. (iStock) “This change in behavior is accompanied by larger and more complex occupations, indicating a profound ecological and technological transformation,” the article states. According to researchers, elephant meat may have provided a substantial surplus of food for early human groups. (iStock) “The food surplus generated by the exploitation of some of these animals would have been a significant advantage for the survival and adaptation of hominid groups,” adds the study. TRY OUR LATEST LIFESTYLE QUIZ Fox News Digital has reached out to the study’s lead researcher for comment. Researchers continue to uncover new clues about human diets, spanning from ancient civilizations to early humans. The discovery points to elephants playing a key role in early human diets and survival strategies. (Marica van der Meer/Universal Images Group) Last December, archaeologists in Pompeii discovered preserved food remains that revealed what slaves ate before Mount Vesuvius erupted.
