Faunal Migration In Late-Glacial Central Italy: Implications for Human Resource Exploitation Presented at the Annual Meeting of the Stable Isotopes Mass … (original) (raw)
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Alpine and Mediterranean Quaternary, 2018
In this work, we explored the isotopic composition of faunal (rodents, rhinoceros and bison) and human skeletal remains from the Middle Pleistocene layers of Isernia la Pineta (Molise, Italy). We particularly focused on high spatial resolution isotope analyses of tooth enamel by laser ablation MC-ICP-MS for strontium isotopes and by micro-drilling sampling for oxygen isotopes. Results from bone specimens were compared with the isotope variability of modern plants collected in the area surrounding the site, in a radius of about 30 km. While the human group seems local, macro-mammals show a higher degree of mobility.
Scientific reports, 2017
We present the Sr isotopic composition of enamel of the most ancient deciduous tooth ever discovered in Italy to assess human mobility in Middle Pleistocene. Reconstructing ancient mobility is crucial for understanding human strategy at exploiting temporally and spatially patchy resources, with most studies focusing on indirect evidences, ultimately affecting our interpretation on hominin territoriality and energetic costs invested by hominin groups. Here, we use the high spatial resolution and micro-destructivity options offered by the Laser Ablation Multi-Collector Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry technique, to determine the (87)Sr/ (86)Sr intra-tooth variability of a human deciduous incisor from the Middle Pleistocene layers of the Isernia La Pineta site (Italy). We compared these data with the Sr isotopic signature of local micro-mammals, the broadest home-range of the macro-mammals and with modern plant samples. Our study reveals that while macro-mammals have possib...
Faunal Exploitation during the Middle Palaeolithic in south-eastern France and north-western Italy
2004
Six Middle Palaeolithic sites (Lazaret, Madonna dell'Arma, Caverna delle Fate, Arma delle Manie, Santa Lucia Superiore and San Francesco), dated from Oxygen Isotopic Stages 6 to 3 (OIS 6 to 3), have been studied from a zooarchaeological and palaeoecological point of view. The sites have yielded faunal assemblages rich in cervids, generally dominated by Cervus elaphus. The frequency of other ungulate taxa is inextricably linked to the topography of each site, as well as to climatic and environmental conditions. Taphonomic analysis indicates that humans were the main agents of accumulation of the large mammal remains. Mortality and seasonality data show various patterns of age distribution of the ungulate species, and suggest that there is no relation between the occupation season of these sites and the hunting of a particular species. The dominance of red deer can be explained by their natural abundance and by their high rendering in terms of hunting transport, meat quantity, and other useful materials like skins, tendons, and soon. Neanderthal subsistence strategies do not show any evolution in the studied area during the period of Oxygen Isotopic Stages 6 to 3. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.