Original version

BBC World Service East Asia

CrowdScience

Documentaries

Factual: Science & Nature

Factual: Science & Nature: Science & Technology

Answering your questions about life, Earth and the universe

We take your questions about life, Earth and the universe to researchers hunting for answers at the frontiers of knowledge.

No Master Brand

BBC World Service Online

BBC World Service schedule for American satellite radio and the Caribbean

BBC World Service Americas and the Caribbean

BBC World Service

BBC World Service Europe and the Middle East

BBC Afghan Radio

BBC World Service Australasia

BBC World Service East and Southern Africa Schedule

BBC World Service East and Southern Africa

BBC World Service South Asia

BBC World Service News Internet

BBC World Service West and Central Africa Schedule

BBC World Service West and Central Africa

CrowdScience: Were humans ever semi-aquatic?

Discussion & Talk

Were humans ever semi-aquatic?

19/01/2024 GMT

BBC World Service - CrowdScience, Were humans ever semi-aquatic?

Was there a semi-aquatic period for humans as we’ve evolved?

Is there any evidence for humans having a semi-aquatic period in our evolutionary history?

What evidence is there for a semi-aquatic period in human evolutionary history? That’s the question that’s been bothering listener Dave in Thailand. He thinks our lack of hair and love of water might indicate that, at some point, we were more water-based than we are now. But what does science have to say on the matter? 

The theory that our ape ancestors returned to the water for a phase in our evolutionary history is a controversial idea that most scientists disagree with.   

Anand Jagatia chats to Dr Melissa Ilardo, assistant professor at the University of Utah, about our dive reflex - a physiological response we display when submerged underwater, which helps direct oxygen towards vital organs. But this is not a response that is unique to humans - it is found in all mammals. Experts say it developed long before all apes split off in the evolutionary tree.  

To find out more about the theory itself Anand hears from John Langdon, emeritus professor at the University of Indianapolis. He explains why the aquatic ape theory is not generally accepted by anthropologists, what the fossil record can tell us about our evolutionary path and why evolution is much more complex than the aquatic ape hypothesis suggests. 

While there may be little evidence of a semi-aquatic period in our evolutionary past, there are some communities around the world that have adapted to utilising their watery environments in more recent evolutionary history.  

Anand speaks to Dr Nicole Smith-Guzman at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute who has found evidence that ancient populations in Panama were habitually diving in the sea for shells and seafood. She explains how she can piece together evidence from different sources to detect the activity of ancient populations. And Dr Melissa Ilardo explains how evolutionary pressure can cause physical changes in isolated communities, as our bodies ultimately adapt to help us thrive in more watery environments.  

Producer: Hannah Fisher 
Presenter: Anand Jagatia 
Editor: Richard Collings 
Production co-ordinator: Jonathan Harris 
Sound engineer: Jackie Margerum

(Photo: Woman swimming underwater. Credit: Petrelos/Getty Images)

Accessibility links

Programme Index

CrowdScience

Were humans ever semi-aquatic?

Genres

Formats

Brand

BBC World Service East Asia

About BBC World Service