Date:

Fossil teeth suggest prehistoric red deer in the Adriatic migrated seasonally

Analysis of oxygen isotopes in fossil teeth from red deer near the Adriatic Sea suggest that they migrated seasonally, which may have driven the movements of the Paleolithic hunter-gatherers that ate them, according a study published June 8, 2016 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Suzanne Pilaar Birch from University of Georgia, USA, and colleagues.

Migration patterns of large herbivores, such as red deer (Cervus elaphus), have been used as a proxy to estimate the movements of the prehistoric hunter-gatherers in Europe who relied on them for sustenance.

However, interpretation of prehistoric migrations often relies on data from modern populations that may be very different from those that lived before the end of the last ice age. Assessing isotope variation in fossil teeth can be a more accurate indicator of ancient migration patterns, as the teeth of migrating animals have less variation in levels of the oxygen isotope δ18O than the teeth of animals which do not.

In the present study, Birch and colleagues analyzed oxygen isotope variation in the teeth from 10 red deer and 14 mountain goats collected at three cave sites in the Adriatic, which hunter-gatherers used as hunting outposts 12,000-8,000 years ago, to directly reconstruct the migratory behavior of red deer.

- Advertisement -

Although relying on a small dataset, the researchers found differences in the δ18O ranges in red deer teeth from the Pleistocene/Late Upper Paleolithic compared to the Holocene/Mesolithic, and found less isotope variation within red deer teeth compared to teeth from mountain goats.

The authors suggest that, while mountain goats mainly stayed put, red deer may have migrated seasonally in the Pleistocene/Late Upper Paleolithic, moving over smaller ranges in the Holocene/Mesolithic. These migration patterns may, in turn, have influenced human mobility strategies during this period.

PLOS

- Advertisement -
Mark Milligan
Mark Milligan
Mark Milligan is an award winning journalist and the Managing Editor at HeritageDaily. His background is in archaeology and computer science, having written over 7,500 articles across several online publications. Mark is a member of the Association of British Science Writers (ABSW), the World Federation of Science Journalists, and in 2023 was the recipient of the British Citizen Award for Education and the BCA Medal of Honour.

Mobile Application

spot_img

Related Articles

Clusters of ancient qanats discovered in Diyala

An archaeological survey has identified three clusters of ancient qanats in the Diyala Province of Iraq.

16,800-year-old Palaeolithic dwelling found in La Garma cave

Archaeologists have discovered a 16,800-year-old Palaeolithic dwelling in the La Garma cave complex, located in the municipality of Ribamontán al Monte in Spain’s Cantabria province.

Burials found in Maya chultun

Archaeologists from the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) have uncovered burials within a chultun storage chamber at the Maya city of Ek' Balam.

Archaeologists analyse medieval benefits system

Archaeologists from the University of Leicester have conducted a study in the main cemetery of the hospital of St. John the Evangelist, Cambridge, to provide new insights into the medieval benefits system.

Major archaeological discoveries in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania

In an announcement by the State Office for Culture and Monument Preservation (LAKD), archaeologists excavating in the German state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania have uncovered seven Bronze Age swords, 6,000 silver coins, and two Christian reliquary containers.

Early humans hunted beavers 400,000-years-ago

Researchers suggests that early humans were hunting, skinning, and eating beavers around 400,000-years-ago.

Archaeologists find burial bundles with carved masks

A team of archaeologists from the PUCP Archaeology Program “Valley of Pachacámac” have uncovered over 70 intact burial bundles with carved masks.

Should the Elgin Marbles be returned?

The Elgin marbles are a collection of decorative marble sculptures taken from the temple of Athena (the Parthenon) on the Acropolis in Athens.