Discovery of tiny bone sheds light on mysterious ‘hobbit’ humans in Indonesia


The bone found on Flores was so small that researchers initially thought it must have been from a child. - Photo: Prof Yousuke Kaifu

PARIS: The discovery of a tiny arm bone suggests that an ancient human dubbed “hobbits” only shrank down to their diminutive size after they arrived on an Indonesian island a million years ago, scientists said on Tuesday (Aug 6).

Much about the pint-sized Homo floresiensis has been shrouded in mystery since the first fossils suggesting their existence were found on the island of Flores in 2003.

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