Land Snails as a Diet Diversification Proxy during the Early Upper Palaeolithic in Europe (original) (raw)
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The aim of this paper is to describe the results of a study of the terrestrial gastropods recovered at the Epipalaeolithic site Balma del Gai, and comparing it with other Upper Palaeolithic and Epipalaeolithic samples from the Mediterranean region of the Iberian Peninsula. Balma del Gai is located in northeastern Spain, in the municipality of Moià, province of Barcelona. This small rock shelter lies about 50 km inland from the coast. The second layer, the middle one, (Nivell I) contains diverse Epipalaeolithic occupations dated from 12,240 110 BP to 8930 140 BP. A large amount of terrestrial gastropod shells was recovered during archaeological excavations. These shells belong to the species Cepaea nemoralis, which is very common in other contemporaneous sites from the region. The anthropic origin of the sample has been confirmed by a previous taphonomic study. New results reveal an evolution in the use of land snails as a food resource from south to north in Mediterranean Iberia: consumption of land snails began in the south with the warmer stages at the end of the Pleistocene and extended northwards during the Holocene. However, land snails were most likely only a seasonal food source, and their presence is probably correlated with the exploitation of other resources such as small mammals (rabbits) and collected plants and fruits.
In this paper, we present a method to analyze lithic assemblages that can yield detailed information about Paleolithic technological organization patterns and land-use strategies. Applying it to series of Late Pleistocene assemblages from sites distributed along the northern Mediterranean (i.e., Gibraltar, eastern Spain and southeastern Italy) and spanning the Middle–Upper Paleolithic Transition, we show how this approach can be used to track diachronic behavioral change for Paleolithic hunter-gatherers. We demonstrate that the approach has wide applicability, that it can be used to reconstruct prehistoric land-use practices provided sedimentation rates can be accounted for, and that it provides a better explanation for diachronic lithic variability than schemes that simply classify assemblages in poorly defined “archaic” to “evolved” sequences. This analysis strongly suggests that no marked shift in the flexibility of technological organization or land-use strategies coincides with the Middle–Upper Paleolithic Transition. The implications of these findings and the apparent disjunction of behavioral and biological change known to have taken place during that interval lead us to outline new kinds of research questions which may better enable researchers to comprehend the mechanisms of the Transition process.
Quaternary International, 2011
Arenal de la Virgen and Casa Corona, located in the upper Vinalopó Valley (SE of the Iberian Peninsula), are open-air Mesolithic sites dated to the Middle Holocene e 8600-7800 cal BP. Recent excavations have provided evidence of non-marine assemblages dominated by terrestrial (Sphincterochila candidissima and Iberus alonensis) and fresh water gastropods (Melanopsis tricarinata tricarinata) associated with habitation structures. These sites represent the first documented cases of systematic land snail consumption at open-air residential camps in the Iberian Mediterranean Region. This report presents the assemblage composition and modern ethological parameters, and discusses taphonomic processes, gathering strategies, seasonal patterns and their implications in subsistence practices. The pattern of occurrence of these species is contrasted with lake environmental records at a local scale to trace paleoecological conditions in the study area.
New insights on Neolithic food and mobility patterns in Mediterranean coastal populations
American Journal of Physical Anthropology, 2020
Objectives: The aims of this research are to explore the diet, mobility, social organization, and environmental exploitation patterns of early Mediterranean farmers, particularly the role of marine and plant resources in these foodways. In addition, this work strives to document possible gendered patterns of behavior linked to the neolithization of this ecologically rich area. To achieve this, a set of multiproxy analyses (isotopic analyses, dental calculus, microremains analysis, ancient DNA) were performed on an exceptional deposit (n = 61) of human remains from the Les Bréguières site (France), dating to the transition of the sixth to the fifth millennium BCE. Materials and Methods: The samples used in this study were excavated from the Les Bréguières site (Mougins, Alpes-Maritimes, France), located along the southeastern Mediterranean coastline of France. Stable isotope analyses (C, N) on bone collagen (17 coxal bones, 35 craniofacial elements) were performed as a means to infer protein intake during tissue development. Sulfur isotope ratios were used as indicators of geographical and environmental points of origin. The study of ancient dental calculus helped document the consumption of plants. Strontium isotope analysis on tooth enamel (n = 56) was conducted to infer human provenance and territorial mobility. Finally, ancient DNA analysis was performed to study maternal versus paternal diversity within this Neolithic group (n = 30). Results: Stable isotope ratios for human bones range from −20.3 to −18.1‰ for C, from 8.9 to 11.1‰ for N and from 6.4 to 15‰ for S. Domestic animal data range from −22.0 to −20.2‰ for C, from 4.1 to 6.9‰ for N, and from 10.2 to 12.5‰ for S. Human enamel 87Sr/86Sr range from 0.7081 to 0.7102, slightly wider than the animal range (between 0.7087 and 0.7096). Starch and phytolith microremains were recovered as well as other types of remains (e.g., hairs, diatoms, fungal spores). Starch grains include Triticeae type and phytolith includes dicotyledons and monocot types as panicoid grasses. Mitochondrial DNA characterized eight different maternal lineages: H1, H3, HV (5.26%), J (10.53%), J1, K, T (5.2%), and U5 (10.53%) but no sample yielded reproducible Y chromosome SNPs, preventing paternal lineage characterization. Discussion: Carbon and nitrogen stable isotope ratios indicate a consumption of protein by humans mainly focused on terrestrial animals and possible exploitation of marine resources for one male and one undetermined adult. Sulfur stable isotope ratios allowed distinguishing groups with different geographical origins, including two females possibly more exposed to the sea spray effect. While strontium isotope data do not indicate different origins for the individuals, mitochondrial lineage diversity from petrous bone DNA suggests the burial includes genetically differentiated groups or a group practicing patrilocality. Moreover, the diversity of plant microremains recorded in dental calculus provide the first evidence that the groups of Les Bréguières consumed a wide breadth of plant foods (as cereals and wild taxa) that required access to diverse environments. This transdisciplinary research paves the way for new perspectives and highlights the relevance for novel research of contexts (whether recently discovered or in museum collections) excavated near shorelines, due to the richness of the biodiversity and the wide range of edible resources available.