Investigation of human hunting seasonality through dental microwear analysis of two Caprinae in late Pleistocene localities in Southern France

Abstract

Dental microwear analysis was used to interpret the diet of two species of Caprinae, Capra caucasica and Rupicapra pyrenaica in three Mousterian sites (120–35 Kyr) of Southern France. Both species, which are representative of the hunted faunal assemblages, were found to be seasonal mixed-feeders. During a phase of cold climate, the differences observed in the proportion of various microwear features can be explained only by differences in diet. These microwear changes were found to be correlated with hunting periods which are different between the sites. Our findings confirm former observations made using other methods and show how dental microwear analysis can be applied to explore seasonality in zooarchaeological and paleoenvironmental reconstructions.