Hunting Methods of Early Man - Term Paper Example

Hunting Methods of Early Man Hunting is a referred to as a method of trailing and chasing living animals, especially the wild animals in order one to acquire food, for leisure, or even for trade. In the present life animals which are considered for hunting are known as the game and are usually mammals. In fact, even the ancient humans used to go hunting in order to get food and also hides for their clothing. They usually used to kill wild animals such as antelopes, gazelles, wildebeest, zebra and other big animals whereby they are mammals. However, some of the animals they hunted become extinct, such as the waterbuck, hartebeest and the springbok. As the ancient people they had different techniques of hunting. Though it differed due to their stages for instance the homo habilis had their different method of hunting, homo erectus too and also the Neanderthal. To begin with, homo habilis was discovered in the year 1960 by the leaky team in Tanzania a place known as Olduvai Gorge. The Homo habilis name refers to ‘handy man’ or a ‘skillful person’ (Lockard 9). In fact, he was entitled to this name because some force tools were found alongside him. The homo hablis had a short body like and his arms were long such as those of an ape, but he was unique from the other hominids because he had a bigger brain than they. Due to the scarcity of traditional forest foods such as the fruits and vegetables they decided to find an alternative for them to feed. In fact, it was difficult for them to have the forest vegetables because the tropical forest were replaced by the savannah woodlands. Due to this they invented stone tools which are refereed to as the Oldowan tools which it possible for them to be able to hunt animals and crush their bones and eat the bone marrow and also eat the meat. Because of their features they used to wait for animals under a tree. Therefore, when the animals come they would split into different positions and disperse and chase them and kill them. They used their stone tool to skin the animals and eat them. Although at some point they were forced to to share the predictors meat when they have not captured any animal. Homo erectus is among the extinct hominin of the early man. It is thought that the homo erectus evolved from the homo habilis. Homo erectus are also referred to as the upright man because they used to walk into legs. Homoerectus also had a height of 6 feet. They're also invented tools which were referred to as the Acheulian and were more advanced than the stone tools of the homo habilis. Their tools were more diverse and elaborated for instance the hand axe. The Homo erectus were the first people who invented fire. They had a better way of hunting and foraging skills which made them adapt and survive in their environment (Boaz 105). The Homo erectus used to use the fire which they invented to hunt. The Homo erectus had a brain size like for a human baby whereby it was too small for reasoning or even imagining. They used to chase the animals with the fire to their trap whereby their trap was muddy pool. Due to fear the animals would run unkowingly towards they trap and when the animals ran to the muddy pool they were unable to run or move quickly, therefore the homo erectus killed them and skinned them and because they had invented fire they would roast the meat instead of eating it while it was raw. They also used the fire to blind their prey. When the prey was in the mood of blindness they would capture it and kill it. Neanderthal is another extinct species of the homodians of the early people. In fact the Neanderthal is classified as a subspecies of the homo sapiens. In fact, they resemble the modern human beings. They are also believed to travel in groups of less than 30 people, in fact, they travelled with a maximum people of 15 whereby it also include the number of the children, women and also the men. Neanderthals were very highly skilled in tool making, but not as skilled as the modern humans. They made tools such as the spears pointed and knives points whereby they used to put them in a wooden handle, they also made scrappers, pronged harpoons and also engraving tools. They also designed tools for cutting meat, cracking bones to make them such as the skull. For instance, they used to make flint scrapers from bone hammer whereby they used to scrape meat off from their bones and also skinning the animals. Animal bones which were found in the Neanderthals sites, it indicated that they used to hunt and ate large animals such as the bears, aurochs which is a large animal with long horn referred to as a wild ox, wooly mammoths, bison and even the elk. They also hunted smaller animals such as the hare, shellfish, tortoise, and also other small reptiles. Neanderthal used to go hunting and butchering in organized groups (Carbonell 3). In fact of human being, able to kill such big and dangerous animals even before the bows and arrows were invented, they needed a group of skilled men and even a strategy of how to trap it and kill it. They had wide shoulders and even broad hips and generally a very firm and powerful burst which gave them the advantage of ambushing animals because they were unable to run after the animals, therefore the scientists authorized that there were primarily ambushed hunters. The Neanderthals used to hunt by attacking their prey directly and with the use of their tools such as the knives and the spears they would thrust the animal to death instead of just throwing stones or other weapons to the animal. This because they used to hunt in dense forest whereby it made it impossible for them to throw stones or their weapons to the animal. The Neanderthals had a bright strategy whereby they used to confuse their pray and when it is in the mood of confusion they would use that advantage and attack it using their sharp stone point and their wooden spears and kill it. Some of them used to exploit the natural landscape with features such as bogs, deep stream banks and muddy pools whereby it gives the animals the disadvantage of escaping. Therefore, they would also chase the animals in that area and kill them. Because the fire was already invented, they also used it to scare animals and drive them to their tap. Though the hunting process was dangerous the Neanderthals were able to heal after beginning to attack by their prey and also from other animals. In conclusion, in the modern days the hunting has advanced due to the new technology weapons which are light to carry and they kill faster. There is also a new strategy of hunting. For instance, use of baits whereby one uses scented food to attract animals which they are targeting. Use of dogs to track pursue and even catch the prey for them. In addition, there is the use of artificial light whereby the animal is targeted is blinded and then captured. The modern light includes the infrared whereby it is an invisible luminous energy. In fact hunting in the present day is more fun though it is prohibited because it has lead to the scarcity of wild animals whereby it is led by poachers who hunt animals for money. Work cited Boaz, Noel T, and Russell L. Ciochon. Dragon Bone Hill: An Ice-Age Saga of Homo Erectus. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004. Internet resource. Carbonell, Eudald. High Resolution Archaeology and Neanderthal Behavior: Time and Space in Level J of Abric Romaní (capellades, Spain). Dordrecht [Netherlands: Springer, 2012. Print. Lockard, Craig A. Societies, Networks and Transitions: A Global History. Boston, Mass: Houghton Mifflin, 2008. Print. 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