Biology of Humans 6th Edition by Judith Goodenough,Betty McGuire

Exercise 13

In two articles published in August 2014 in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS),1,2 Maciej Henneberg, Robert B. Eckhardt, Kenneth Hsü, and colleagues provide evidence that the skull and thighbones of LB1, a specimen designated as belonging to a new species of hominin, Homo floresiensis, instead represent an individual of H. sapiens with Down syndrome. David Pacchioli reported on these findings for ScienceDaily. The following is an excerpt from his report. You can read the entire article at: www.sciencedaily.com/ releases/2014/08/140804151510.htm:
"In October 2004, excavation of fragmentary skeletal remains from the island of Flores in Indonesia yielded what was called 'the most important find in human evolution for 100 years.' Its discoverers dubbed the find Homo floresiensis, a name suggesting a previously unknown species of human. Now detailed reanalysis by an international team of researchers including Robert B. Eckhardt, professor of developmental genetics and evolution at Penn State, Maciej Henneberg, professor of anatomy and pathology at the University of Adelaide, and Kenneth Hsu", a Chinese geologist and paleoclimatologist, suggests that the single specimen on which the new designation depends, known as LB1, does not represent a new species. Instead, it is the skeleton of a developmentally abnormal human and, according to the researchers, contains important features most consistent with a diagnosis of Down syndrome. "The skeletal sample from Liang Bua cave contains fragmentary remains of several individuals,' Eckhardt said. 'LB1 has the only skull and thighbones in the entire sample.' "No substantial new bone discoveries have been made in the cave since the finding of LB1."
Given that fossils are rarely formed and found, does the fact that a new species was named on the basis of one skull and one thighbone seem reasonable