Before the early 2010s, scientists were conflicted on the question of Homo sapiens interbreeding with Neanderthals, but since then, multiple studies have shown the incredible overlap between Neanderthal and human DNA - enough that approximately 1%-4% of modern human DNA traces directly back to Neanderthal ancestry. Neanderthals coexisted with modern humans for tens of thousands of years, and the two groups certainly met. Evidence shows that Homo sapiens not only procreated with Neanderthals - they also slew and ate them.