oddlight

THE barbecue is strictly a male domain, and now we know why.

Put it down to instinct, says Dr Mark Horton, head of the department of archaeology and anthropology at the University of Bristol, in Britain.

"Our early ancestors were doing exactly the same thing hundreds of thousands of years ago," said the visiting scholar, who was at the Australian Museum, in Sydney, yesterday.

"It is not surprising that even today, some of our behaviour may be influenced by instincts that developed through our long evolutionary history.

"This may include … why men like cooking meat outside on their barbecue, but women still feel they have a role preparing vegetables."

Dr Horton said hunting for game and sharing the meat was a key evolutionary milestone, from which rituals and a complex societal structure would have developed.

He said the human race had evolved over millions of years and much of what is described as instinct is actually behaviour crucial to survival.

"Our ancient ancestors left behind a myriad of clues on how they lived, what they ate, how they evolved."

Dr Horton will give a lecture on the role of diet in human evolution at Sydney University, at 1pm tomorrow.

Tongs, skewers and other barbecueing implements must be left at the door.