Could Neanderthals Mate with Humans?

In Eurasia, interbreeding between Neanderthals and Denisovans with modern humans took place several times. The introgression events into modern humans are estimated to have happened about 47,000–65,000 years ago with Neanderthals and about 44,000–54,000 years ago with Denisovans.

Can humans and Neanderthals breed?

It is also possible that while interbreeding between Neanderthal males and human females could have produced fertile offspring, interbreeding between Neanderthal females and modern human males might not have produced fertile offspring, which would mean that the Neanderthal mtDNA could not be passed down.

What other species did humans mate with?

Our human evolutionary lineage includes many species and relatives, including Neanderthals and Denisovans. Scientists already knew that modern humans interbred with Neanderthals and Denisovans 40,000 to 60,000 years ago.