Ancient Human Species Might Still Be Alive on Indonesia’s Flores Island, Anthropologist Suggests

Anthropologist Gregory Forth proposes an intriguing idea: the possibility of the survival of Homo floresiensis, or ‘Hobbits,’ on Flores Island, Indonesia. This challenges the prevalent view that the species vanished some 50,000 years ago.

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

Despite the lack of concrete proof, retired anthropologist Gregory Forth has spent years building a case for the continued existence of Homo floresiensis, the “Hobbit” species, on Flores Island. His work delves into over 30 firsthand accounts from the local Lio people, claiming encounters with this diminutive hominin.

The story began in 2003 when a partial skeleton of a Homo floresiensis female was unearthed in Liang Bua, a limestone cave on Flores Island. The anthropologists, who were searching for evidence of modern human migration from Asia to Australia, dubbed it “the Hobbit” in homage to J.R.R. Tolkien’s iconic characters. Estimates suggest the specimen’s age ranged from 13,000 to 38,000 years. In 2016, a subsequent study revised the dating of the remains to 50,000 years ago, with anthropologists and scholars unanimously concluding that the species had become extinct.

Yet, Forth seeks to confront this idea through his latest book, Between Ape and Human, and his recent essay featured in The Scientist. The retired University of Alberta professor argues that academics have long disregarded numerous local eyewitness reports, dismissing genuine sightings of the “Hobbit” as mere primitive myths.

“My aim in writing the book was to find the best explanation — that is, the most rational and empirically best supported — of Lio accounts of the creatures,” Forth writes. “These include reports of sightings by more than 30 eyewitnesses, all of whom I spoke with directly. And I conclude that the best way to explain what they told me is that a non-sapiens hominin has survived on Flores to the present or very recent times.”

“We simply don’t know when this species became extinct or indeed dare I say — I did dare say — we don’t even know if it is extinct,” he told Live Science.

Forth believes the Lio people’s detailed accounts deserve serious consideration. They describe creatures around 3-5 feet (1-1.5 meters) tall, walking upright and covered in hair, often encountered near caves and water sources. Some also claim to have seen footprints or heard distinctive vocalizations.

The anthropologist describes how the folk zoology and cosmology of the Lio people, who live on the island, include tales of humans undergoing transformations into animals as they navigate and adjust to different habitats. He draws a parallel between this phenomenon and Lamarckism, wherein acquired physical traits are believed to be inherited.

“As my fieldwork revealed, such posited changes reflect local observations of similarities and differences between a supposed ancestral species and its differentiated descendants,” he says.

The Lio perceive these beings as animals due to their lack of advanced language and technology compared to humans. Yet, their striking resemblance to humans is unmistakable—they stand upright, walk on two feet, and possess a considerable amount of hair. In fact, they are among the various animals that the Lio people assert have descended from humans.

“They say the face looks, well, I would say ape-like,” Forth told The Debrief in a recent interview. “But they say monkey-like, because they don’t make a distinction between monkeys and apes.”

“For the Lio, the ape-man’s appearance as something incompletely human makes the creature anomalous and hence problematic and disturbing,” Forth wrote in The Scientist.

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While certain reports of the unidentified creature may be dismissed, he highlights instances with multiple witnesses, or where the “hominoid” was deceased, allowing closer examination.

Currently, the most precise estimate places H. floresiensis’ existence at 50,000 years ago. Nonetheless, Forth advocates for the integration of Indigenous wisdom into hominin evolution research.

“Our initial instinct, I suspect, is to regard the extant ape-men of Flores as completely imaginary. But, taking seriously what Lio people say, I’ve found no good reason to think so,” he concludes. “What they say about the creatures, supplemented by other sorts of evidence, is fully consistent with a surviving hominin species, or one that only went extinct within the last 100 years.”

While skepticism naturally arises with such an extraordinary assertion, Forth asserts that to the Lio people, these creatures really exist.

“They’re scared of us,” locals told Forth, “and we’re scared of them.”