A landmark genomic study published in the Pacific Northwest Anthropological Review has identified a previously unknown "ghost" lineage in the DNA of 12,000-year-old remains found in British Columbia. This genetic signature suggests a distinct wave of migration into the Americas that lived alongside the ancestors of modern Indigenous groups but eventually disappeared, challenging the traditional "Beringia" migration models.
The research, led by an international team of paleogeneticists, utilized high-resolution sequencing to isolate markers that do not match any known Siberian or East Asian populations. This discovery implies that the Pleistocene landscape of North America was far more genetically diverse than previously thought, with multiple isolated groups navigating the deglaciated corridors of the Pacific coast during the end of the last Ice Age.
- Identifies a genetic "ghost population" in 12,000-year-old skeletal remains from the Canadian coast.
- Suggests a non-linear migration pattern into the Americas via coastal refugia.
- Provides new insights into the survival strategies of early human groups during the Younger Dryas climatic shift.