---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Since bears and coastal humans have an…"
description: "\"“Since bears and coastal humans have an omnivorous diet that overlaps considerably, the bear story may be pointing us to the route that could have been..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4a/stephen-oppenheimer-40111_years-ago_since-bears-and-coastal-humans-have-an-o_2639046.jpg"
---

#  Since bears and coastal humans have an omnivorous diet…

![“Since bears and coastal humans have an omnivorous diet that overlaps considerably, the bear story may be pointing us to the route that could have been taken by humans 12,000–15,000 years ago.” quote by Stephen Oppenheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4a/stephen-oppenheimer-40111_years-ago_since-bears-and-coastal-humans-have-an-o_2639046.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4a/stephen-oppenheimer-40111_years-ago_since-bears-and-coastal-humans-have-an-o_2639046.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4a/stephen-oppenheimer-40111_years-ago_since-bears-and-coastal-humans-have-an-o_2639046.jpg)

> ““Since bears and coastal humans have an omnivorous diet that overlaps considerably, the bear story may be pointing us to the route that could have been taken by humans 12,000–15,000 years ago.””

[Stephen Oppenheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-oppenheimer/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Human diets overlapped with bears, suggesting ancient humans may have followed similar foraging routes.

**In simple terms:** Ancient humans might have eaten like bears.

Key Takeaway

Consider ecological parallels in evolution.

Themes

evolution diet anthropology environment history

Mood

thoughtful inquisitive

Type

theoretical speculative

When to use this quote

- ancient migrations
- climate adaptation
- food scarcity
- cultural exchange

Key Concepts

foraging behavior species interaction archaeology

Questions to Reflect On

- What can we learn from ancient diet overlaps?
- How might this inform current conservation?

A Different Perspective

Modern diets differ greatly from ancient ones.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[000 Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/000-years/) [Bears Coastal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bears-coastal-2253208/) [Humans Omnivorous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans-omnivorous-2253207/) [Omnivorous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/omnivorous-416793/) [Omnivorous Diet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/omnivorous-diet-2253209/) [Years ago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years-ago/)

## Related quotes

> [ “Both groups \[with fibromyalgia\] reported having quite a lot of pain at rest in the beginning of the study, but there was a significant… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kati-kaartinen/both-groups-with-fibromyalgia-reported-having-quite-a-lot-of-pain-at/)

[Kati Kaartinen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kati-kaartinen/)

> [Im omnivorous in my tastes, fiction and non-fiction, always several books on the go, though Ill read a novel in a day or two.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/o-r-melling/im-omnivorous-in-my-tastes-fiction-and-non-fiction-always-several/)

[O.R. Melling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/o-r-melling/)

> [I'm omnivorous in my tastes, fiction and non-fiction, always several books on the go, though I'll read a novel in a day or two.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-m-omnivorous-in-my-tastes-fiction-and-non-fiction-always-several/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I'm pretty omnivorous - in fact, I don't think of books in terms of genres. J. K. Rowling's 'Harry Potter' books are no more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michiko-kakutani/i-m-pretty-omnivorous-in-fact-i-don-t-think-of-books-in-terms-of/)

[Michiko Kakutani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michiko-kakutani/)

> [We enslave, torture and then slaughter animals to eat them, then when we eventually become sick from that we enslave, torture and kill more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharon-gannon/we-enslave-torture-and-then-slaughter-animals-to-eat-them-then-when/)

[Sharon Gannon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharon-gannon/)

> [There is indeed something omnivorous about the act of photography. It offers a way of responding to everything about everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-r-lippard/there-is-indeed-something-omnivorous-about-the-act-of-photography-it/)

[Lucy R. Lippard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-r-lippard/)

> [I am as omnivorous as it's possible to be. I always say there's nothing I won't eat and nothing I won't wear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/padma-lakshmi/i-am-as-omnivorous-as-it-s-possible-to-be-i-always-say-there-s/)

[Padma Lakshmi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/padma-lakshmi/)

> [“When it came to music, I was omnivorous.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lish-mcbride/when-it-came-to-music-i-was-omnivorous/)

[Lish McBride](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lish-mcbride/)

> [“I am what is known as an omnivorous reader and it all goes right through me and out of my mouth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-thirkell/i-am-what-is-known-as-an-omnivorous-reader-and-it-all-goes-right/)

[Angela Thirkell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-thirkell/)

> [“There was an omnivorous intellect that won him the family sobriquet of Walking Encyclopedia.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-liu/there-was-an-omnivorous-intellect-that-won-him-the-family-sobriquet/)

[Eric Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-liu/)

> [I am an omnivorous reader with a strangely retentive memory for trifles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/i-am-an-omnivorous-reader-with-a-strangely-retentive-memory-for/)

[Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/)

> [“If one were to rely solely on radiocarbon dating, the whole human world would seem to have started just over 40,000 years ago. Only”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-oppenheimer/if-one-were-to-rely-solely-on-radiocarbon-dating-the-whole-human/)

[Stephen Oppenheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-oppenheimer/)

> [“In Africa by 1.2 million years ago the brains of Homo rhodesiense had grown to within 6 per cent of the volume of modern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-oppenheimer/in-africa-by-1-2-million-years-ago-the-brains-of-homo-rhodesiense-had/)

[Stephen Oppenheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-oppenheimer/)

> [“THE GREATEST MYSTERY OF ALL TIME… THE HISTORY OF HUMAN ORIGINS… WILL BE REVEALED. 70,000 years ago, the human race almost went extinct. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-g-riddle/the-greatest-mystery-of-all-time-the-history-of-human-origins-will-be/)

[A.G. Riddle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-g-riddle/)

> [2,000 years ago one man got nailed to a tree for saying how great it would be if everyone was nice to each other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/2-000-years-ago-one-man-got-nailed-to-a-tree-for-saying-how-great-it/)

[Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/)

## More by Stephen Oppenheimer

> [“Before the LGM there were no brown bears in southern Canada, but they had spread across there by 13,000 years ago. Their mitochondrial group…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-oppenheimer/before-the-lgm-there-were-no-brown-bears-in-southern-canada-but-they/)

[Stephen Oppenheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-oppenheimer/)

> [“We differ from other large mammals, but not much from rodents, in the great variety of habitats we now occupy and in the population…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-oppenheimer/we-differ-from-other-large-mammals-but-not-much-from-rodents-in-the/)

[Stephen Oppenheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-oppenheimer/)

> [“Were they like Star Trek’s Star-Base 9, polyglot,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-oppenheimer/were-they-like-star-trek-s-star-base-9-polyglot/)

[Stephen Oppenheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-oppenheimer/)

> [“In Africa by 1.2 million years ago the brains of Homo rhodesiense had grown to within 6 per cent of the volume of modern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-oppenheimer/in-africa-by-1-2-million-years-ago-the-brains-of-homo-rhodesiense-had/)

[Stephen Oppenheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-oppenheimer/)

> [“If one were to rely solely on radiocarbon dating, the whole human world would seem to have started just over 40,000 years ago. Only”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-oppenheimer/if-one-were-to-rely-solely-on-radiocarbon-dating-the-whole-human/)

[Stephen Oppenheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-oppenheimer/)

> [“Perhaps, as with cars, there was a law of diminishing evolutionary return, and it was no longer economical to build models with ever larger…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-oppenheimer/perhaps-as-with-cars-there-was-a-law-of-diminishing-evolutionary/)

[Stephen Oppenheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-oppenheimer/)

> [“Genetic palaeontology brings clarity to a field of near-medieval confusion. The”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-oppenheimer/genetic-palaeontology-brings-clarity-to-a-field-of-near-medieval/)

[Stephen Oppenheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-oppenheimer/)

> [“Admittedly there could have been interbreeding between archaic and modern Homo sapiens, but there is no convincing evidence for this in our male and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-oppenheimer/admittedly-there-could-have-been-interbreeding-between-archaic-and/)

[Stephen Oppenheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-oppenheimer/)

> [“It turns out that, far from the world being a common genetic melting pot with massive to-and-fro prehistoric movements and mixings, the majority of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-oppenheimer/it-turns-out-that-far-from-the-world-being-a-common-genetic-melting/)

[Stephen Oppenheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-oppenheimer/)

> [“A multidisciplinary synthesis is difficult enough if the disciplines are singing different songs, but if they are in different auditoriums . . .”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-oppenheimer/a-multidisciplinary-synthesis-is-difficult-enough-if-the-disciplines/)

[Stephen Oppenheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-oppenheimer/)

[Explore all 11 Stephen Oppenheimer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-oppenheimer/)

## More Years ago quotes

> [“Probably it goes without saying, but time machine guys don't get a lot of action. Had a one night stand with something cute a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-yu/probably-it-goes-without-saying-but-time-machine-guys-don-t-get-a-lot/)

[Charles Yu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-yu/)

> [ \[The Dalai Lama\] told me some years ago, "I've made every concession to China, and I've been as open and tolerant as I could,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/the-dalai-lama-told-me-some-years-ago-i-ve-made-every-concession-to/)

[Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/)

> [History has often showed us the strength of the forces that are unleashed by the yearning for freedom. It moved people to overcome their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-merkel/history-has-often-showed-us-the-strength-of-the-forces-that-are/)

[Angela Merkel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-merkel/)

> [I calculated that if I live up to the age of 80, then I end up using 450 toothbrushes in my life. All that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dia-mirza/i-calculated-that-if-i-live-up-to-the-age-of-80-then-i-end-up-using/)

[Dia Mirza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dia-mirza/)

> [“A traveling salesman was driving in the country when his car broke down. He hiked several miles to a farmhouse and asked the farmer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-traveling-salesman-was-driving-in-the-country-when-his-car-broke/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I'm a vegetarian - I think there's a strong possibility, had I not become a vegetarian, I would not be working now. I became…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-barker/i-m-a-vegetarian-i-think-there-s-a-strong-possibility-had-i-not/)

[Bob Barker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-barker/)

> [I don't think I've ever bench-pressed anything in my life. Until about two years ago I swam a mile almost every day. Then I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-antosca/i-don-t-think-i-ve-ever-bench-pressed-anything-in-my-life-until-about/)

[Nick Antosca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-antosca/)

> [“Graham Newman reports years ago. “Coat-tailing” was the term.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/corey-wrenn/graham-newman-reports-years-ago-coat-tailing-was-the-term/)

[Corey Wrenn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/corey-wrenn/)

> [Memory revises me. Even now a letter comes from a place I don’t know, from someone with my name and postmarked years ago, while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/li-young-lee/memory-revises-me-even-now-a-letter-comes-from-a-place-i-don-t-know/)

[Li-Young Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/li-young-lee/)

> [“Nothing, again, could be more prosaic and impenetrable than the domestic energies of Miss Diana Duke. But Innocent had somehow blundered on the discovery…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-k-chesterton/nothing-again-could-be-more-prosaic-and-impenetrable-than-the/)

[G.K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-k-chesterton/)

> [Many years ago I was fishing, and as I was reeling in the poor fish, I realised, 'I am killing him - all for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-mccartney/many-years-ago-i-was-fishing-and-as-i-was-reeling-in-the-poor-fish-i/)

[Paul McCartney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-mccartney/)

> [2,000 years ago one man got nailed to a tree for saying how great it would be if everyone was nice to each other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/2-000-years-ago-one-man-got-nailed-to-a-tree-for-saying-how-great-it/)

[Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/)

> [Its funny how you can grow away from your friends, when just a few years ago they were the most important people in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/its-funny-how-you-can-grow-away-from-your-friends-when-just-a-few/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [My gramps died 4 years ago from a heart attack .. I came in late at the hospital because I was buying dope.. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yankit/my-gramps-died-4-years-ago-from-a-heart-attack-i-came-in-late-at-the/)

[Yankit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yankit/)

> [We're in a golden age for television. TV 25 years ago was slow, plodding , boring. The production values were not great. Today it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrian-dunbar/we-re-in-a-golden-age-for-television-tv-25-years-ago-was-slow/)

[Adrian Dunbar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrian-dunbar/)

[Browse all 6,765 Years ago quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years-ago/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“Since bears and coastal humans have an omnivorous diet that overlaps considerably, the bear story may be pointing us to the route that could have been taken by humans 12,000–15,000 years ago.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Stephen Oppenheimer"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-oppenheimer/since-bears-and-coastal-humans-have-an-omnivorous-diet-that-overlaps/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Years ago"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-oppenheimer/since-bears-and-coastal-humans-have-an-omnivorous-diet-that-overlaps/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4a/stephen-oppenheimer-40111_years-ago_since-bears-and-coastal-humans-have-an-o_2639046.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4a/stephen-oppenheimer-40111_years-ago_since-bears-and-coastal-humans-have-an-o_2639046.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4a/stephen-oppenheimer-40111_years-ago_since-bears-and-coastal-humans-have-an-o_2639046.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Since bears and coastal humans have an omnivorous diet that overlaps considerably, the bear story may be…” — Stephen Oppenheimer",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Stephen Oppenheimer",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-oppenheimer/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“Since bears and coastal humans have...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-oppenheimer/since-bears-and-coastal-humans-have-an-omnivorous-diet-that-overlaps/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-oppenheimer/since-bears-and-coastal-humans-have-an-omnivorous-diet-that-overlaps/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
