A prehistoric ice age once reduced the entire Neanderthal population to a single lineage
Science
A brutal prehistoric ice age nearly wiped out Neanderthals 75,000 years ago, leaving only a single genetic lineage to survive in isolation before the species eventually vanished entirely.
Around 75,000 years ago, a catastrophic shift in the Earth's climate triggered a genetic bottleneck that decimated Neanderthal populations. While they once thrived across Europe, the extreme cold reduced their numbers so drastically that genetic diversity plummeted. By the time the ice melted 10,000 years later, only a small group in southern France remained to carry on the species.