<p class="first" id="d554450e188">The exploitation of mid- and large-sized herbivores
(ungulates) was central to hominin
subsistence across Late Pleistocene Europe. Reconstructing the paleoecology of prey-taxa
is key to better understanding procurement strategies, decisions and behaviors, and
the isotope analysis of faunal bones and teeth found at archaeological sites represent
a powerful means of accessing information about past faunal behaviors. These isotope
zooarchaeological approaches also have a near-unique ability to reveal environmental
conditions contemporary to the human activities that produced these remains. Here,
we present the results of a multi-isotope, multitissue study of ungulate remains from
the Middle Paleolithic site of Abri du Maras, southern France, providing new insights
into the living landscapes of the Rhône Valley during MIS 3 (level 4.2 = 55 ± 2 to
42 ± 3 ka; level 4.1 = 46 ± 3 to 40 ± 3 ka). Isotope data (carbon, nitrogen) reveal
the dietary niches of different ungulate taxa, including the now-extinct giant deer
(Megaloceros). Oxygen isotope data are consistent with a mild seasonal climate during
level 4.2, where horse (Equus), bison (Bison), and red deer (Cervus elaphus) were
exploited year-round. Strontium and sulfur isotope analyses provide new evidence for
behavioral plasticity in Late Pleistocene European reindeer (Rangifer) between level
4.2 and level 4.1, indicating a change from the migratory to the sedentary ecotype.
In level 4.1, the strong seasonal nature of reindeer exploitation, combined with their
nonmigratory behavior, is consistent with a seasonally restricted use of the site
by Neanderthals at that time or the preferential hunting of reindeer when in peak
physical condition during the autumn.
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