For most of our history, we were not the hunters.

It is tempting to picture early humans as bold pioneers stepping confidently into open landscapes. The fossil record suggests something far less comfortable. Long before cities or agriculture, survival meant moving through territories already claimed by creatures built for ambush and pursuit. New analytical tools are now revisiting old bones and exposing patterns that were once invisible. What emerges is not a story of swift human ascendancy, but of vulnerability repeated across generations. Intelligence was developing, yes, but so was a daily awareness that somewhere nearby, something stronger was watching and waiting.



