Julià Maroto

La cuenca lacustre de Banyoles-Besalú ha proporcionado un gran n-umero de yacimientos paleontológicos y arqueológicos en los que se encuentra bien representada una rica fauna de mamíferos que abarca un período que se extiende desde finales del Plio­ceno hasta el Cuaternario reciente. En la mayoría de los casos estos yacirnientos han sido ya estudiados y descritos, en especial los arqueológicos, conocidos desde finales del siglo XIX. En este trabajo se recogen las citas publicadas y se aportan nuevos datos como resultado de las revisiones que se estan efectuado en las tesis doctorates de dos de los autores (A. G. y J. M).

In the western Mediterranean, changes in hunter‐gatherer subsistence strategies have been identified from the Early Upper Palaeolithic. These changes are characterized by broadening of diet and intensification of small prey exploitation. In the Iberian Peninsula region, intensified small prey exploitation is evidenced by the hunting of large quantities of European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus), which are usually a ubiquitous feature of faunal assemblages from archaeological sites. Before interpretations of the significance of such assemblages can proceed, however, it is necessary to confirm their anthropic origin, as a wide range of predators are agents of accumulation. The taphonomic signatures observed for predators are here applied to the analysis of leporid (rabbits and hares) remains from the Evolved Aurignacian layer of Arbreda Cave (north‐east Iberia). The aims of this work are two‐fold: (i) to identify the agent/s of accumulation; and (ii) to assess possible changes in small prey use during the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic transition. Our results suggest that rabbit assemblages were probably hunted and consumed by humans and that rabbits became a primary resource in hunter‐gatherer diet from the Early Upper Palaeolithic.

The timing of Neanderthal disappearance and the extent to which they overlapped with the earliest incoming anatomically modern humans (AMHs) in Eurasia are key questions in palaeoanthropology^1,2. Determining the spatiotemporal relationship between the two populations is crucial if we are to understand the processes, timing and reasons leading to the disappearance of Neanderthals and the likelihood of cultural and genetic exchange. Serious technical challenges, however, have hindered reliable dating of the period, as the radiocarbon method reaches its limit at ∼ 50,000 years ago³. Here we apply improved accelerator mass spectrometry ¹⁴C techniques to construct robust chronologies from 40 key Mousterian and Neanderthal archaeological sites, ranging from Russia to Spain. Bayesian age modelling was used to generate probability distribution functions to determine the latest appearance date. We show that the Mousterian ended by 41,030–39,260 calibrated years bp (at 95.4% probability) across Europe. We also demonstrate that succeeding ‘transitional’ archaeological industries, one of which has been linked with Neanderthals (Châtelperronian)⁴, end at a similar time. Our data indicate that the disappearance of Neanderthals occurred at different times in different regions. Comparing the data with results obtained from the earliest dated AMH sites in Europe, associated with the Uluzzian technocomplex⁵, allows us to quantify the temporal overlap between the two human groups. The results reveal a significant overlap of 2,600–5,400 years (at 95.4% probability). This has important implications for models seeking to explain the cultural, technological and biological elements involved in the replacement of Neanderthals by AMHs. A mosaic of populations in Europe during the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic transition suggests that there was ample time for the transmission of cultural and symbolic behaviours, as well as possible genetic exchanges, between the two groups.