Scientists are still working to understand why Neanderthals went extinct while Homo sapiens established a lasting presence in Europe. The answer is not simple. It likely involves several overlapping factors, but a new study using techniques inspired by digital ecology is offering a clearer picture.

The research was led by Ariane Burke, a professor of anthropology at Université de Montréal and head of the Hominin Dispersals Research Group in Quebec. Building on work by her doctoral students, Benjamin Albouy and Simon Paquin, Burke adapted models commonly used to study the distribution of plants and animals and applied them to ancient human populations. The approach combines archaeological evidence with ethnographic data to better understand how early humans lived and moved.

The team focused on Europe during the last glacial cycle, between 60,000 and 35,000 years ago. This period was marked by dramatic climate swings, shifting between cold (stadial) and warmer (interstadial) phases.…