These characterizations are accurate in a limited sense: the Checua genetic signature is not detectable in the populations included in the study’s comparison dataset.

But “disappeared” and “vanished” are stronger claims than the evidence strictly supports, for several reasons.

The comparison dataset, while extensive, is not exhaustive.

Present-day South American populations show high genetic diversity, and many communities across western Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, and adjacent regions were not included in the comparison.

It is possible — not certain, but possible — that traces of Checua-related ancestry survive in populations that were not sampled.

The four-thousand-year gap in the ancient DNA timeline means that intermediate steps in the transition are invisible to the current analysis.