Archaic human 'hobbits' were even shorter than we thought, 700,000-year-old teeth and bone reveal

Early hominins known colloquially as "hobbits" may have been shorter than scientists thought, a new analysis of teeth and bones has revealed.

The 700,000-year-old fossilized remains belonged to Homo floresiensis, an extinct species of exceedingly small humans that once inhabited Flores, an island south of mainland Indonesia, according to a study published Tuesday (Aug. 6) in the journal Nature Communications.

The new research may shed light on when H. floresiensis first evolved its diminutive height.

"Acquiring a large body and large brain and becoming clever is not necessarily our destiny," lead author Yosuke Kaifu, a professor at the University Museum at the University of Tokyo, told Live Science in an email. "Depending on the natural environment, there were diverse ways of evolution not only for animals in general but also for humans."

Until recently, it was thought that H. floresiensis stood 3 feet, 2 inches (1 meter) tall, on average. However, this new research shows that the species, which is an offshoot of Homo erectus, was 2.4 inches (6 centimeters) shorter, on average, according to a statement. H. erectus is an extinct human lineage that lived between 2 million and 250,000 years ago and had similar body sizes to modern humans. 

Prior to this study, the smallest known H. floresiensis bones were found at Liang Bua, a cave on Flores located south of Manta Menge, where the new remains were found.  

Related: See the face of the 'hobbit,' an extinct human relative