We left the trees and headed for the beach

Just like ourselves in these glorious May days, our ancient ancestors had one primal urge when the clouds parted. They headed for the beach.

The ritual mass migration to the sea coast as soon as the sun appears is nothing new, according to research which suggests that the first thing early "modern" humans did when they dropped out of the trees was to pack up the family and head for the water.

Scientists have uncovered stone tools and other signs of human activity dating back 125,000 years on fossil beaches and coral reefs on the Red Sea coasts of Eritrea in east Africa, according to a report in Nature. This goes back to the time when early modern humans were emerging from the African savannah and beginning their migration to Europe and Asia.

While they knew nothing about the delights of overheated cars and mile-long tailbacks, the rubbish these distant ancestors left behind showed they were partial to oysters and other coastal delicacies. And clearly they were happy to litter just like today's tourists.

The discoveries were made by a team from the Centro de Investigacio n Cientifica de Educacion Superior of Ensenada, Mexico, which said these ancient day-trippers had adapted well to the coastal marine environment.

With no irony intended, the researchers also argue that the exodus to the beaches "may in part signal the onset of modern human behaviour". The evidence suggested that they found many ways to exploit the marine environment, developing boating and fishing and moving into new areas by trekking along the coasts.

Although there is no evidence to prove it, perhaps other great human seaside inventions were developed at this time, such as the fish-and-chip vendor, the ice-cream machine that runs out just as you reach the head of the queue and the sand-laden sandwich.

In an accompanying article in Nature, a British scientist encourages researchers to examine other coastlines for signs of human habitation, but they may forget the beaches in Ireland. With the sunshine and warm weather expected to stay through the weekend, the coasts will be too littered with sunburnt bodies to do any worthwhile archaeological digging.

Met Eireann forecasters predict that the fine weather should continue at least until the weekend and possibly into next week. Mornings may begin misty but this will burn away quickly to deliver glorious sunshine and temperatures up to 20 degrees.