The exploitation of small prey among the last hunter-gatherers in the Northeast of the Iberian Peninsula: the case of the leporids in the Epipalaeolithic

Abstract

This work is part of a line of research focused on the zooarchaeological and taphonomic analysis of leporid remains (rabbits and hares) recovered in prehistoric sites in the Iberian Peninsula. To that end, a methodology of analysis was applied to study the accumulation of leporids in three archaeological sites in Catalonia (Balma del Gai, Cova de la Guineu and Font Voltada), attributed to the Microlaminar Epipalaeolithic and Geomethic Epipalaeolithic. The methodology involved the joint implementation of taphonomic analysis and experimental research.

Leporids, especially the European rabbit, are one of the most dominant taxa among fauna remains in archaeological sites of the Upper Paleolithic and Epipalaeolithic in the Iberian Peninsula. Due to its great abundance in the faunistic assemblages of archaeological sites throughout Iberia, and specifically to the NE of Iberia, this type of prey played an important role in human communities in prehistory. The fact is that rabbits are the preferred prey among a large number of medium and large predators in Iberia. They are part of the food chain of more than 30 species of predators, including: diurnal raptors, nocturnal raptors, small terrestrial carnivores and humans.

Considering that leporids are part of the diet of a large number of predators, this means that all these predators can accumulate leporids remains in caves and rock shelters. That is why it is necessary to establish the true agent in each case so as not to deceive the rabbit bone accumulations in archaeological sites of this area and of those periods. The use of taphonomic studies focused on the identification of diagnostic damage patterns created by different processes has proved to be essential to establish the origin of archaeological leprosy accumulations. We consider it essential to identify the taphonomic changes in order to establish the agent responsible for the accumulations of leporids in the archaeological sites that are treated in this doctoral thesis.

The taphonomic analysis of the Balma del Gai, Cova de la Guineu and Font Voltada leporids accumulations consisted of a thorough analysis of the surface of the bone, with the intention of identifying possible alterations and / or modifications that could provide us with information about the processes Post-depositional diseases that affect faunistic collections, more specifically the leporid accumulations in our study sample. Given the taphonomic patterns obtained from a series of recent neo-taphonomic studies that characterize the main non-human accumulators of leporids (nocturnal and diurnal raptors and small terrestrial carnivores) in the Iberian Peninsula and similar characteristics of other archaeological sites We inferred in the possible taphonomic agents that could have been involved in the accumulation of leporids remains in the archeological sites studied and to determine to what extent the agent contributed in the accumulation of leporids remains in our sample. In analyzing the consumption marks, butchery and thermo-alteration marks, originated as a consequence of the anthropic activity in modern samples and remains of archaeological rabbits (experimental research), we established a taphonomic pattern derived from these activities to contrast the possibility of Human activity on our archaeological sample through this type of registry in order to evaluate and provide new data on the subsistence strategies of Epipalaeolithic hunter-gatherers in the area.

Este trabajo forma parte de una línea de investigación enfocada al análisis zooarqueológico y tafonómico de restos de lepóridos (conejos y liebres) recuperados en sitios prehistóricos de la Península Ibérica. Se pretende elucidar, a partir del análisis tafonómico de los restos de conejo de los yacimientos de cronologías establecidas en el Epipaleolítico en el NE de Iberia, sobre la importancia de los lepóridos durante la transición del Pleistoceno-Holoceno inicial. Para ello se aplicó una metodología de análisis para abordar el estudio de la acumulación de restos de lepóridos en tres yacimientos arqueológicos de Cataluña (Balma del Gai, Cova de la Guineu y Font Voltada), atribuidos al Epipaleolítico Microlaminar y Epipaléolítico Geométrico. La metodología involucró la implementación conjunta del análisis tafonómico y la investigación experimental. Consideramos esencial identificar los cambios tafonómicos con el fin de establecer el agente responsable de las acumulaciones de lepóridos en los sitios arqueológicos que se tratan en esta tesis doctoral.

El análisis tafonómico de las acumulaciones de lepóridos de Balma del Gai, Cova de la Guineu y Font Voltada consistió en un análisis minucioso de la superficie del hueso, con la intención de identificar posibles alteraciones y / o modificaciones que nos puedieran aportar información sobre los procesos post-deposicionales que afectan a los conjuntos faunísticos, más específicamente los conjuntos de lepóridos en nuestra muestra de estudio. Al analizar las marcas de consumo, la carnicería y las marcas de termo-alteraciones, originadas como consecuencia de la actividad antrópica en muestras modernas y restos de conejos arqueológicos (investigación experimental), establecimos un patrón tafonómico derivado de estas actividades para contrastar la posibilidad de actividad humana sobre nuestra muestra arqueológica a través de este tipo de registro con el fin de evaluar y proporcionar nuevos datos sobre las estrategias de subsistencia de los cazadores-recolectores epipaleolíticos de la zona.