Small mammal taxonomy, taphonomy, and the paleoenvironmental record during the Middle and Upper Paleolithic at Geißenklösterle Cave (Ach Valley, southwestern Germany)

Rhodes, Sara E.; Ziegler, Rafael; Starkovich, Britt M.; Conard, Nicholas J.

doi:10.1016/j.quascirev.2017.12.008

Cited by 22 publications

(38 citation statements)

References 30 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…The clearest indications of this hiatus is seen in the geogenic deposits that typically separate the final MP and the earliest Aurignacian [5,17]. Where these layers are clearly stratified and easily delineated, as at Geißenklösterle and Hohle Fels, they can be used to test hypotheses related to the depopulation of the region by Neanderthal groups prior to modern human arrival [18].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…To this end, we present here a detailed climatic record derived from our analysis of the small mammal material from Hohle Fels designed to identify periods of dramatic climatic shifts correlating with the final occupation of the Ach Valley by Neanderthal groups. In applying a modified indicator species method [18] and the habitat weighting method [27,28] to material recovered from deposits dating from ≥ 44,300 calBP to 39,000 calBP [29], we have identified changes in the vegetation of the Ach Valley landscape and broad shifts in the temperature and humidity of the region. Contextualizing this record within the history of paleoenvironmental research at Hohle Fels and Geißenklösterle allows us to test environmentally driven models for the depopulation of the Ach Valley.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Did climate determine Late Pleistocene settlement dynamics in the Ach Valley, SW Germany?

2019

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The loss of Neanderthal groups across Western and Central Europe during Oxygen Isotope Stage (OIS) 3 has held the attention of archaeologists for decades. The role that climatic change, genetic interbreeding, and interspecies competition played in the extinction of Neanderthal groups is still debated. Hohle Fels is one of several important Middle and Upper Paleolithic sites from the Ach Valley in southwestern Germany which documents the presence of Neanderthals and modern humans in the region. Chronological and stratigraphic records indicate that these two groups occupied the site with little to no overlap or interaction. This provides the opportunity to examine the behavioural variability of Swabian Neanderthal populations without the complication of cross-cultural influence. In this study we contribute a terrestrial paleoenvironmental record derived from the small mammal material from Hohle Fels Cave to the ever-growing archaeological record of this period. By reconstructing the climate and landscape of the Ach Valley during this time we can identify the effect that the OIS 3 environment had on the presence of Neanderthals in the region. Based on indicator taxa and the habitat weighing method, the small mammal record, which includes rodents, insectivores, and bats, from Hohle Fels shows that the earliest Neanderthal occupation took place on a landscape characterized by substantial woodland and forest, rivers and ponds, as well as moist meadows and grasslands. A gradual increase in cold tundra and arctic environments is clear towards the end of the Middle Paleolithic, extending to the end of the early Aurignacian which may correlate with the onset of the Heinrich 4 event (~42,000 kya). Our taphonomic analysis indicates the material was accumulated primarily by opportunistic predators such as the great grey owl, snowy owl, and European eagle owl, and therefore reflects the diversity of landscapes present around the site in the past. Importantly, at the time Neanderthals abandoned the Ach Valley we find no indication for dramatic climatic deterioration. Rather, we find evidence of a gradual cooling of the Swabian landscape which may have pushed Neanderthal groups out of the Ach Valley prior to the arrival of modern human Aurignacian groups.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Did climate determine Late Pleistocene settlement dynamics in the Ach Valley, SW Germany?

2019

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Additional reconstruction based on the microfauna also suggests that the onset of the Aurignacian is characterized by a mild climate, which is followed by a cooler and drier condition, a pattern reflected in the abundance of two species of lemmings and narrow-headed vole [70][71][72]. The middle to upper horizons of the Aurignacian saw a return to a mild climate with open boreal elements.…”

Section: Plos Onementioning

confidence: 99%

Split-based points from the Swabian Jura highlight Aurignacian regional signatures

Kitagawa

Conard

2020

PLoS ONE

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The systematic use of antlers and other osseous materials by modern humans marks a set of cultural and technological innovations in the early Upper Paleolithic, as is seen most clearly in the Aurignacian. Split-based points, which are one of the most common osseous tools, are present throughout most regions where the Aurignacian is documented. Using results from recent and ongoing excavations at Geißenklösterle, Hohle Fels and Vogelherd, we nearly tripled the sample of split-based points from 31 to 87 specimens, and thereby enhance our understanding of the technological economy surrounding the production of osseous tools. Aurignacian people of the Swabian Jura typically left spit-based points at sites that appear to be base camps rich with numerous examples of personal ornaments, figurative art, symbolic imagery, and musical instruments. The artifact assemblages from SW Germany highlight a production sequence that resembles that of SW France and Cantabria, except for the absence of tongued pieces. Our study documents the life histories of osseous tools and demonstrates templates for manufacture, use, recycling, and discard of these archetypal artifacts from the Aurignacian. The study also underlines the diversified repertoire of modern humans in cultural and technological realms highlighting their adaptive capabilities.

show abstract

“…Finally, we recorded digestion on molars, incisors, proximal femora, proximal ulnae, and distal humeri. When categorizing levels of digestion on teeth and the ends of long bones, we used Andrews' (1990) categories: light, moderate, heavy, and extreme but also added the categories "light/moderate" and "moderate/heavy" (following Rhodes et al 2018Rhodes et al , 2019. To avoid overcounting, we recorded digestion on incisor tips only and did not include small fragmented pieces of incisor tips in our counts.…”

Section: Microfaunamentioning

confidence: 99%

New perspectives on human subsistence during the Magdalenian in the Swabian Jura, Germany

Wong

Starkovich

Drucker

et al. 2020

Archaeol Anthropol Sci

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The Swabian Jura of southwestern Germany is famous for its Paleolithic sites which have been studied since the 1860s. While there is a rich tradition of research on the Magdalenian, many of the best-known sites were not excavated using modern methods, and recently, few discoveries of new sites have been made. Thus, much of the information on this period comes from sites lacking data collected using modern standards. This has left open questions regarding the recolonization of the Swabian Jura and hunter-gatherer subsistence and settlement during the Magdalenian in the region. Langmahdhalde is a recently discovered rock shelter in the Lone Valley of the Swabian Jura that has intact, well-stratified horizons dating to the Magdalenian with associated lithic artifacts, faunal remains, and combustion features. In this paper, we present a study of the faunal materials from this new site. We use the macrofaunal remains to discuss human subsistence and a taphonomic analysis of the microfaunal remains to determine the spatial scale of our previously published paleoenvironmental interpretations. Our results on human subsistence support previous interpretations from other Magdalenian assemblages in Central Europe. Further, our taphonomic study of the microfauna suggests that our paleoenvironmental analyses are relatively local, within a maximum of 70 km2 from the rock shelter. We place these results within the larger context of human paleoecology in the region and suggest that the successful resettlement of the Swabian Jura by Magdalenian peoples during the Late Glacial was probably facilitated by the presence of a higher diversity of resources on the landscape compared to regions to the west.

show abstract

Small mammal taxonomy, taphonomy, and the paleoenvironmental record during the Middle and Upper Paleolithic at Geißenklösterle Cave (Ach Valley, southwestern Germany)

Cited by 22 publications

References 30 publications

Did climate determine Late Pleistocene settlement dynamics in the Ach Valley, SW Germany?

Did climate determine Late Pleistocene settlement dynamics in the Ach Valley, SW Germany?

Split-based points from the Swabian Jura highlight Aurignacian regional signatures

New perspectives on human subsistence during the Magdalenian in the Swabian Jura, Germany

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About