1
|
Russo G, Milks A, Leder D, Koddenberg T, Starkovich BM, Duval M, Zhao JX, Darga R, Rosendahl W, Terberger T. First direct evidence of lion hunting and the early use of a lion pelt by Neanderthals. Sci Rep 2023; 13:16405. [PMID: 37828055 PMCID: PMC10570355 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-42764-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/24/2023] [Accepted: 09/14/2023] [Indexed: 10/14/2023] Open
Abstract
During the Upper Paleolithic, lions become an important theme in Paleolithic art and are more frequent in anthropogenic faunal assemblages. However, the relationship between hominins and lions in earlier periods is poorly known and primarily interpreted as interspecies competition. Here we present new evidence for Neanderthal-cave lion interactions during the Middle Paleolithic. We report new evidence of hunting lesions on the 48,000 old cave lion skeleton found at Siegsdorf (Germany) that attest to the earliest direct instance of a large predator kill in human history. A comparative analysis of a partial puncture to a rib suggests that the fatal stab was delivered with a wooden thrusting spear. We also present the discovery of distal lion phalanges at least 190,000 old from Einhornhöhle (Germany), representing the earliest example of the use of cave lion skin by Neanderthals in Central Europe. Our study provides novel evidence on a new dimension of Neanderthal behavioral complexity.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Gabriele Russo
- Paleoanthropology, Senckenberg Centre for Human Evolution and Palaeoenvironment, Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen, 72070, Tübingen, Germany.
- Lower Saxony State Office for Cultural Heritage, Niedersächsisches Landesamt Für Denkmalpflege, 30175, Hanover, Germany.
| | - Annemieke Milks
- Department of Archaeology, University of Reading, Reading, RG6 6DW, UK
| | - Dirk Leder
- Lower Saxony State Office for Cultural Heritage, Niedersächsisches Landesamt Für Denkmalpflege, 30175, Hanover, Germany
| | - Tim Koddenberg
- Department of Wood Biology and Wood Products, University of Göttingen, 37077, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Britt M Starkovich
- Senckenberg Centre for Human Evolution and Palaeoenvironment, University of Tübingen, 72070, Tübingen, Germany
- Institute for Archaeological Sciences, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - M Duval
- Centro Nacional de Investigación sobre la Evolución Humana (CENIEH), 09002, Burgos, Spain
- Australian Research Centre for Human Evolution (ARCHE), Griffith University, Nathan, QLD, 4111, Australia
- Palaeoscience Labs, Department Archaeology and History, La Trobe University, Melbourne Campus, Bundoora, VIC, 3086, Australia
| | - J-X Zhao
- Radiogenic Isotope Facility, School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, 4072, Australia
| | - Robert Darga
- Südostbayerisches Naturkunde- Und Mammut-Museum, Siegsdorf, Germany
| | - Wilfried Rosendahl
- Reiss-Engelhorn-Museen, Zeughaus C5, 68159, Manssnheim, Germany
- Curt-Engelhorn-Center of Archaeometrie, C4,8, 68159, Mannheim, Germany
| | - Thomas Terberger
- Lower Saxony State Office for Cultural Heritage, Niedersächsisches Landesamt Für Denkmalpflege, 30175, Hanover, Germany
- Seminar of Prehistoric Archaeology, University of Göttingen, 37073, Göttingen, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Martínez-Navarro B, Gossa T, Carotenuto F, Bartolini-Lucenti S, Palmqvist P, Asrat A, Figueirido B, Rook L, Niespolo EM, Renne PR, Herzlinger G, Hovers E. The earliest Ethiopian wolf: implications for the species evolution and its future survival. Commun Biol 2023; 6:530. [PMID: 37193884 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-023-04908-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2022] [Accepted: 05/03/2023] [Indexed: 05/18/2023] Open
Abstract
In 2017, a hemimandible (MW5-B208), corresponding to the Ethiopian wolf (Canis simensis), was found in a stratigraphically-controlled and radio-isotopically-dated sequence of the Melka Wakena paleoanthropological site-complex, on the Southeastern Ethiopian Highlands, ~ 2300 m above sea level. The specimen is the first and unique Pleistocene fossil of this species. Our data provide an unambiguous minimum age of 1.6-1.4 Ma for the species' presence in Africa and constitutes the first empirical evidence that supports molecular interpretations. Currently, C. simensis is one of the most endangered carnivore species of Africa. Bioclimate niche modeling applied to the time frame indicated by the fossil suggests that the lineage of the Ethiopian wolf faced severe survival challenges in the past, with consecutive drastic geographic range contractions during warmer periods. These models help to describe future scenarios for the survival of the species. Projections ranging from most pessimistic to most optimistic future climatic scenarios indicate significant reduction of the already-deteriorating territories suitable for the Ethiopian Wolf, increasing the threat to the specie's future survival. Additionally, the recovery of the Melka Wakena fossil underscores the importance of work outside the East African Rift System in research of early human origins and associated biodiversity on the African continent.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Bienvenido Martínez-Navarro
- ICREA, Pg. Lluís Companys 23, 08010, Barcelona, Spain.
- Institut Català de Paleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social (IPHES-CERCA), Zona Educacional 4, Campus Sescelades URV (Edifici W3), 43007, Tarragona, Spain.
- Universitat Rovira i Virgili, Departament d'Història i Història de l'Art, Avinguda de Catalunya 35, 43002, Tarragona, Spain.
| | - Tegenu Gossa
- Human Evolution Research Center (HERC), The University of California at Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA.
- Institute of Archaeology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel.
- Department of History and Heritage Management, Arba Minch University, Arba Minch, Ethiopia.
| | - Francesco Carotenuto
- Department of Earth, Environment and Resource Sciences, University of Naples "Federico II", Naples, Italy
| | - Saverio Bartolini-Lucenti
- Earth Science Department, Paleo[Fab]Lab, University of Florence, Via G. La Pira 4, Firenze, 50121, Italy
- Institut Català de Paleontogia M. Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, E-08193, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Spain
| | - Paul Palmqvist
- Departamento de Ecología y Geología, Universidad de Málaga, Universidad de Málaga, Campus de Teatinos, 29071, Málaga, Spain
| | - Asfawossen Asrat
- Department of Mining and Geological Engineering, Botswana International University of Science and Technology, Private Bag 16, Palapye, Botswana
- School of Earth Sciences, Addis Ababa University, P. O. Box 1176, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
| | - Borja Figueirido
- Departamento de Ecología y Geología, Universidad de Málaga, Universidad de Málaga, Campus de Teatinos, 29071, Málaga, Spain
| | - Lorenzo Rook
- Earth Science Department, Paleo[Fab]Lab, University of Florence, Via G. La Pira 4, Firenze, 50121, Italy
| | - Elizabeth M Niespolo
- Department of Geosciences, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
- Department of Earth and Planetary Science, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA
- Berkeley Geochronology Center, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Paul R Renne
- Department of Earth and Planetary Science, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA
- Berkeley Geochronology Center, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Gadi Herzlinger
- Institute of Archaeology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Erella Hovers
- Institute of Archaeology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel.
- Institute of Human Origins, Arizona State University, Tempe, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Tappen M, Bukhsianidze M, Ferring R, Coil R, Lordkipanidze D. Life and death at Dmanisi, Georgia: Taphonomic signals from the fossil mammals. J Hum Evol 2022; 171:103249. [PMID: 36116366 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2022.103249] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2021] [Revised: 07/27/2022] [Accepted: 07/29/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
There are many hypotheses regarding influences on the early hominin biogeographic spread into Eurasia; among them is increased meat-eating. Dmanisi in Georgia is one of the rare Early Pleistocene sites in Eurasia, and here we present primary information and analysis of the medium and large mammal taphonomy, contributing information about site formation and the hominins' interaction with the fauna. Nearly 85% of the specimens come from the B1 stratum. Relative abundances of mammal families demonstrate some bias toward carnivores, especially Canis borjgali, and diverse Felidae species. Bones display little weathering. Post-depositional surface modifications and matrix obscure many bone surfaces, but carnivore tooth marking is the most common bone surface modification from the nutritive taphonomic phase. Tooth pits are large, in the size range of those made by modern Crocuta crocuta and Panthera leo. Breakage variables indicate most breaks occurred while the bones were still fresh, many by carnivore consumption. Fairly even limb bone representation of herbivores suggests carcasses were introduced to the site nearly whole. Hominin tool marks are present in low frequencies, but they suggest a variety of behaviors. These marks are found on Equus, Palaeotragus, Bison, large cervids, Pseudodama, Canis, and Mammuthus. Some were made by filleting proximal limb segments, and so are likely indicative of early access to carcasses, while other marks suggest scavenging. The Homo taphonomic variables resemble the rest of the taphonomic signatures from the site with little weathering, a slightly higher percentage of their bones are whole, but only a few have probable carnivore damage. The assemblage characteristics are compared to modern actualistic and experimental assemblages, and it is concluded that Dmanisi presents a palimpsest of hyena denning, felid activity, hominin meat-eating and likely natural deaths.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Martha Tappen
- Department of Anthropology, University of Minnesota, 301 19th Ave S. Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA.
| | - Maia Bukhsianidze
- Georgian National Museum, 3 Purtseladzes Str., Tbilisi, 0105, Georgia
| | - Reid Ferring
- Department of Geography and the Environment, University of North Texas, 1155 Union Circle #305279, Denton, TX, 76203, USA
| | - Reed Coil
- Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Nazarbayev University, 53 Kabanbay Batyr Avenue, Nur-Sultan, 010000, Kazakhstan
| | | |
Collapse
|
4
|
Palmqvist P, Rodríguez-Gómez G, Bermúdez de Castro JM, García-Aguilar JM, Espigares MP, Figueirido B, Ros-Montoya S, Granados A, Serrano FJ, Martínez-Navarro B, Guerra-Merchán A. Insights on the Early Pleistocene Hominin Population of the Guadix-Baza Depression (SE Spain) and a Review on the Ecology of the First Peopling of Europe. Front Ecol Evol 2022. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2022.881651] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The chronology and environmental context of the first hominin dispersal in Europe have been subject to debate and controversy. The oldest settlements in Eurasia (e.g., Dmanisi, ∼1.8 Ma) suggest a scenario in which the Caucasus and southern Asia were occupied ∼0.4 Ma before the first peopling of Europe. Barranco León (BL) and Fuente Nueva 3 (FN3), two Early Pleistocene archeological localities dated to ∼1.4 Ma in Orce (Guadix-Baza Depression, SE Spain), provide the oldest evidence of hominin presence in Western Europe. At these sites, huge assemblages of large mammals with evidence of butchery and marrow processing have been unearthed associated to abundant Oldowan tools and a deciduous tooth of Homo sp. in the case of BL. Here, we: (i) review the Early Pleistocene archeological sites of Europe; (ii) discuss on the subsistence strategies of these hominins, including new estimates of resource abundance for the populations of Atapuerca and Orce; (iii) use cartographic data of the sedimentary deposits for reconstructing the landscape habitable in Guadix-Baza; and (iv) calculate the size of the hominin population using an estimate of population density based on resource abundance. Our results indicate that Guadix-Baza could be home for a small hominin population of 350–280 individuals. This basin is surrounded by the highest mountainous reliefs of the Alpine-Betic orogen and shows a limited number of connecting corridors with the surrounding areas, which could have limited gene flow with other hominin populations. Isolation would eventually lead to bottlenecks, genetic drift and inbreeding depression, conditions documented in the wild dog population of the basin, which probably compromised the viability of the hominin population in the medium to long term. This explains the discontinuous nature of the archeological record in Guadix-Baza, a situation that can also be extrapolated to the scarcity of hominin settlements for these ancient chronologies in Europe.
Collapse
|
5
|
Bartolini-Lucenti S, Cirilli O, Pandolfi L, Bernor RL, Bukhsianidze M, Carotenuto F, Lordkipanidze D, Tsikaridze N, Rook L. Zoogeographic significance of Dmanisi large mammal assemblage. J Hum Evol 2021; 163:103125. [PMID: 34954399 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2021.103125] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2021] [Revised: 11/23/2021] [Accepted: 11/23/2021] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
We undertake a comparative mammalian zoogeographic analysis with the aim of revealing the extent to which the Dmanisi Early Pleistocene large mammal assemblage resembles, at the genus level, African, Arabian, and Eurasian localities of similar age. The inclusion of Old World Pliocene and Pleistocene mammalian faunas provides us with insights into the provincial origins of specific mammalian taxa and permits us to assess the relative affiliation of the Dmanisi mammalian faunas to other faunas in the Old World. Our analysis also allows us to consider hypotheses about the timing and direction of zoogeographic connections between western Eurasia and Africa during the Early Pleistocene. We utilize multiple zoogeographic analytical tools as a cross-comparison of Dmanisi with 42 other Eurasian and African mammalian-bearing localities between 2.7 and 0.7 Ma. Overall, we find that Dmanisi compares most closely with a subgroup of Greek, Italian, and Spanish localities that are slightly younger than Dmanisi itself. This could suggest a progressive dispersal from East to West of the large mammal communities during the late Early Pleistocene and the first occurrence at Dmanisi, and then later in Western Europe, of some taxa such as Stephanorhinus ex gr. etruscus-hundsheimensis, Equus altidens, Bison georgicus, Soergelia minor, Megantereon whitei, Canis borjgali, Canis (Xenocyon) lycaonoides. Dmanisi's habitats included drier areas, probably of open wooded savannah and grassland and by mountainous to semiarid rocky terrain. There is evidence that Dmanisi records short intervals of increased aridity in the middle part of the succession contemporaneous with the occurrence of Homo.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Saverio Bartolini-Lucenti
- Earth Science Department, Paleo[Fab]Lab, University of Florence, via La Pira 4, 50121, Firenze, Italy; Natural History Museum, Geology and Paleontology Section, via La Pira 4, 50121, Firenze, Italy
| | - Omar Cirilli
- Earth Science Department, Paleo[Fab]Lab, University of Florence, via La Pira 4, 50121, Firenze, Italy; Dottorato di Ricerca in Scienze della Terra, University of Pisa, via S. Maria 56, 56126, Pisa, Italy
| | - Luca Pandolfi
- Earth Science Department, Paleo[Fab]Lab, University of Florence, via La Pira 4, 50121, Firenze, Italy
| | - Raymond Louis Bernor
- Laboratory of Evolutionary Biology, Department of Anatomy, College of Medicine, Howard University, 20059, Washington DC, USA; Human Origins Program, Department of Anthropology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, 20013, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Maia Bukhsianidze
- Georgian National Museum, 3, Rustaveli Avenue, Tbilisi-0105, Georgia
| | - Francesco Carotenuto
- Department of Earth Sciences, Environment and Resources, "Federico II" University of Naples, Via Cinthia 21, 80126, Naples, Italy
| | | | | | - Lorenzo Rook
- Earth Science Department, Paleo[Fab]Lab, University of Florence, via La Pira 4, 50121, Firenze, Italy.
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Bartolini-Lucenti S, Madurell-Malapeira J, Martínez-Navarro B, Cirilli O, Pandolfi L, Rook L, Bushkhianidze M, Lordkipanidze D. A comparative study of the Early Pleistocene carnivore guild from Dmanisi (Georgia). J Hum Evol 2021; 162:103108. [PMID: 34852965 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2021.103108] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2021] [Revised: 10/22/2021] [Accepted: 10/22/2021] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
The carnivore guild of the Early Pleistocene site of Dmanisi is among the most diverse of the Early Pleistocene of the entire Old World. It includes 14 carnivoran taxa: Homotherium latidens, Megantereon whitei, Panthera onca georgica, Acinonyx pardinensis, Lynx issiodorensis; Pachycrocuta brevirostris; Canis (Xenocyon) lycaonoides, Canis borjgali, Vulpes alopecoides; Ursus etruscus; Lutra sp., Martes sp., Meles sp., and Pannonictis sp. The analysis of this rich carnivore guild was carried out under different methodological approaches to compare the assemblage with other chronological coeval European, Asian, and African sites from a paleobiological perspective. To achieve the goal, we used a permutational hierarchical method called boostrapping cluster analysis based on taxonomic absence/presence matrices (at both generic and specific level) and on ecological matrices (considering dietary preferences/hunting strategies of each carnivoran) and carried out Mantels tests assessing magnitude of time, space, ecology, and taxonomy as source of difference between guilds. Our results suggest a close similarity among the Dmanisi carnivore assemblage and other guilds recorded from European late Villafranchian sites such as Pirro Nord, Venta Micena, and Apollonia 1 and, in a lesser extent, to European Epivillafranchian sites as Vallonnet, Untermassfeld, or the Vallparadís Section. Early to Middle Pleistocene Asian carnivore assemblages display several similarities with the Dmanisi guild mainly in the record and diversity of felid and the canid ecomorphotypes. Eastern African sites such as Olduvai and Omo, as well as South African sites, display a lower similarity with the studied sample, basically for the most diverse hyenid taphocoenoses. To sum up, the present study suggests a close similarity between the Dmanisi carnivore guild and other European Late Early Pleistocene assemblages without close parallels with African or Asian assemblages.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Saverio Bartolini-Lucenti
- Earth Science Department, Paleo[Fab]Lab, University of Florence, Via G. La Pira 4, Firenze, 50121, Italy; Natural History Museum, University of Florence, Via G. La Pira 4, Firenze, 50121, Italy.
| | - Joan Madurell-Malapeira
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, C/ de Les Columnes, S/n Campus de La UAB, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, 08193, Spain
| | - Bienvenido Martínez-Navarro
- Area de Prehistòria, Universitat Rovira I Virgili (URV), Avda. Catalunya 35, Tarragona, 43002, Spain; ICREA, Pg. Lluís Companys 23, Barcelona, 08010, Spain; IPHES-CERCA, Institut Català de Paleoecologia Humana I Evolució Social, C/ Marcel.lí Domingo S/n, Campus Sescelades, Edifici W3, Tarragona, 43007, Spain
| | - Omar Cirilli
- Earth Science Department, Paleo[Fab]Lab, University of Florence, Via G. La Pira 4, Firenze, 50121, Italy; Dottorato di Ricerca in Scienze Della Terra, Università di Pisa, Via S. Maria 53, Pisa, 56126, Italy
| | - Luca Pandolfi
- Earth Science Department, Paleo[Fab]Lab, University of Florence, Via G. La Pira 4, Firenze, 50121, Italy
| | - Lorenzo Rook
- Earth Science Department, Paleo[Fab]Lab, University of Florence, Via G. La Pira 4, Firenze, 50121, Italy
| | | | | |
Collapse
|