Possible Pleistocene hominin tracks from South Africa’s west coast

Abstract

Two probable tracks have been identified on the ceiling of a small overhang in the Pleistocene Langebaan Formation on South Africa’s west coast. They may have been made by a hominin trackmaker. They appear to have been registered at walking speed on a level, sandy dune substrate. Three tracks, attributed to Homo sapiens, were previously identified near Langebaan in 1995, and were popularly labelled ‘Eve’s Footprints’. The new identification of possible hominin tracks near Langebaan is the second from South Africa’s west coast. This discovery adds to the sparse but growing global record of possible hominin tracks preserved in aeolianites.

Significance:

• Two probable fossil tracks have been identified on the ceiling of an overhang near Langebaan.
• The tracks may have been made by a human walking on a level dune surface during the Pleistocene.
• This discovery is the second of its kind on the west coast, and complements the 1995 identification near Langebaan of Pleistocene fossil tracks attributed to humans.