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If there is (sea) ice, you can walk on it.

See pictures posted earlier. Fiennes found the going almost impossible, he also had to take all his supplies with him on the ice.
I know of no Auk, nor other species on the ice despite a lifetime of birding, Seals breed on sea ice, but only in spring.
If sea ice produces such wonderful opportunities I fail to understand why so few people exploited it.

I do think the SE Asian continental shelf was dry when HE/MP walked to Java (1,57 mio BP),

The experts and their maps disagree.

Roy.

Digit wrote:

If there is (sea) ice, you can walk on it.

Fiennes found the going almost impossible, he also had to take all his supplies with him on the ice.

HE didn't need clean underwear.

I know of no Auk, nor other species on the ice despite a lifetime of birding

That's amazing, because I do: penguins! Millions of them!

Seals breed on sea ice, but only in spring.

...and rest on the ice edge all year long.

If sea ice produces such wonderful opportunities I fail to understand why so few people exploited it.

Because it's cold out there.

I do think the SE Asian continental shelf was dry when HE/MP walked to Java (1,57 mio BP),

The experts and their maps disagree.

An excellent reason to stick to my guns.

That's amazing, because I do: penguins! Millions of them!

Yes it is, absolutely amazing as if you check I specifically mentioned earlier the North Atlantic, and penguins are about as rare there as ostriches!

An excellent reason to stick to my guns.

Not really seeing as you've posted their maps when it suits your arguments.

Roy.

Digit wrote:

That's amazing, because I do: penguins! Millions of them!

Yes it is, absolutely amazing as if you check I specifically mentioned earlier the North Atlantic, and penguins are about as rare there as ostriches!

Small wonder: they were hunted to extinction in the northern hemisphere by hominids because they were so easy to catch.

I do think the SE Asian continental shelf was dry when HE/MP walked to Java (1,57 mio BP)

Sunda is dry when world sea levels are lowered due to an ice age. Java, being to the west of Wallace's line, was accessable by foot. That is why discoveries east of Wallace's line are noteworthy (Phillipines 67kya, Hobbit and HE in Flores, etc.) since they needed to raft/boat to get there. See:

Source: Lifted from Dons Maps, as I recall

When the O-18/O-16 ratio drops below zero, ice is building up, sea levels are dropping, and hominids are walking. This situation has occurred with regularity on 100,000 year intervals since circa 2.5 million years ago when the Isthmus of Panama formed:

Source: Heslop et al (2001)

Nice map, Cogs.

Of course, all those people were killed when Toba blew up.

Cognito wrote:

So there were plenty of opportunities to walk, weren't there?

Minimalist wrote:Nice map, Cogs.

Of course, all those people were killed when Toba blew up.

No they weren't: Toba was in the northern hemisphere, Java is in the southern hemisphere.

Toba's on Sumatra. It's next to Java.

Of course, all those people were killed when Toba blew up.

A shitload of hominids bit the dust after Toba, but there were survivors of at least four major species (HS, HN, HE and HF) and apparently Indonesia didn't fare that poorly - see: http://www.andaman.org/BOOK/originals/W ... r5.htm#5-4; however, it may have given HS the edge.

Yes, RS, people could still walk to Java, but who would want to do that??

Small wonder: they were hunted to extinction in the northern hemisphere by hominids because they were so easy to catch.

The Ostriches as well I take it?

Roy.

Minimalist wrote:Toba's on Sumatra. It's next to Java.

"Next" is relative, Min: they are a thousand miles apart!
But much more importantly: those islands are on/in different hemispheres and that makes a world of difference (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buys_Ballot%27s_law).

Digit wrote:

Small wonder: they were hunted to extinction in the northern hemisphere by hominids because they were so easy to catch.

The Ostriches as well I take it?

No, the ostriches kicked the bucket because they forgot to don their cleats and slipped on the ice...

And the Penguins froze to death 'cos someone tore the wrappings off!

http://www.google.co.uk/images?hl=&rlz= ... CCcQsAQwAA

Roy.

Digit wrote:And the Penguins froze to death 'cos someone tore the wrappings off!

http://www.google.co.uk/images?hl=&rlz= ... CCcQsAQwAA

Quite!
And that 'someone' who tore the wrappings off the penguins was HE (there was nobody else around, was there?).
Exactly like Leopard Seals literally tear the wrappings off penguins when they catch 'm, and really turn 'm inside out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6wYy-YBkE0 (a skinning process that may take a half hour; seen it happen).