Ancient humans may still live on Indonesia's Flores island

An anthropologist believes that an ancient human species, Homo floresiensis, commonly known as the "Hobbit", may still exist on the island of Flores, Indonesia.

In 2003, the unearthing of Homo floresiensis bones in Indonesia stunned scientists. The discovery on the island of Flores revealed a previously unknown hominin species that stood 3.5 feet (1 meter) tall and was adept at using stone tools for hunting. The consensus was that the ancient species had gone extinct, but that appears to have changed.

Despite the lack of concrete evidence, retired anthropologist Gregory Forth has spent years building evidence for the continued existence of Homo floresiensis, the 'Hobbit' species , on the island of Flores. His work draws directly on the stories of more than 30 local Lio people who claim to have encountered the diminutive hominid.

The story began in 2003 when a partial skeleton of a female Homo floresiensis was unearthed in Liang Bua , a limestone cave on the island of Flores. Anthropologists looking for evidence of modern human migration from Asia to Australia dubbed it 'the Hobbit.' Estimates put the specimen's age at between 13,000 and 38,000 years old. In 2016, a follow-up study revised the date of the remains to 50,000 years ago, with anthropologists and scholars unanimously concluding that the species had gone extinct.

Cave where Homo floresiensis remains were discovered in 2003, Liang Bua, Flores, Indonesia.

However, Forth has offered counterarguments to this idea through his latest book, "Between Ape and Human ," and his recent essay published in The Scientist magazine . The retired University of Alberta professor argues that scholars have long dismissed many local eyewitness reports as mere myths.

"My goal in writing the book was to find the best explanation—that is, the most plausible and empirically supported explanation—of the Lio accounts of the creatures," Forth writes. "These included sighting reports from more than 30 eyewitnesses, all of whom I spoke to directly. And I concluded that the best way to explain what they told me was that a race of non-sapiens had survived on Flores until the present time or very recently."

"We simply don't know when this species went extinct or, actually, dare I say it — I dare say it — we don't even know if it went extinct," he told Live Science .

Could Homo floresiensis have survived to this day in the forests of the Indonesian island of Flores? One anthropologist certainly thinks so.

Forth believes the detailed accounts of the Lio people deserve to be taken seriously. They describe creatures that are about 3-5 feet (1-1.5 meters) tall, walk upright, and are covered in hair, often found near caves and water sources. Some people also claim to have seen footprints or heard distinctive voices.

The anthropologist describes how the folk zoology and cosmology of the Lio people, who live on the island, include stories of humans undergoing transformation into animals as they navigate and adapt to different habitats. He draws parallels between this phenomenon and Lamarckism, in which acquired physical traits are believed to be inherited.

'As my field research has revealed, such perceived changes reflect local observations of the similarities and differences between a presumed ancestral species and its divergent descendants,' he says .

The Lio consider these creatures to be animals due to their lack of language and advanced technology compared to humans. However, their resemblance to humans is undeniable – they stand upright, walk on two legs, and have a significant amount of hair. In fact, they are among the many animals that the Lio claim are descended from humans.

'They said the face looked like an ape,' Forth told The Debrief in a recent interview . 'But they said it looked like a monkey, because they don't know the difference between a monkey and an ape.'

"For the Lio, the appearance of the ape-man as something not quite human makes the creature anomalous and therefore problematic and disturbing," Forth writes in a study in  The Scientist .

To the Lio, the ape-man's appearance was something not quite human.

While certain reports of unidentified creatures can be dismissed, he highlights cases with multiple witnesses or cases where the "hominin" is dead, allowing for closer examination.

Currently, the best estimate places H. floresiensis's existence at 50,000 years ago. However, Forth advocates incorporating indigenous wisdom into hominin evolutionary research.

'I suspect our initial instinct is to regard the surviving hominins of Flores as a fantasy. However, if I take seriously what the Lio people say, I find no good reason to think so,' he concludes. ' What they say about these creatures, supplemented by other types of evidence, is entirely consistent with a surviving hominin species or one that has only become extinct within the last 100 years.'

Locals told Forth: "They fear us and we fear them."