Les ongulés d'Atapuerca. Stratigraphie et biogéographie

Abstract

The Ungulates from Atapuerca: Stratigraphy and Biogeography. The Sierra de Atapuerca, near Burgos (Spain), has various fissure fillings that yielded fossil animals, including fossil man, and archaeological remains, of late Early Pleistocene to Holocene age. Level TD6 in the locality Gran Dolina, which contained the type material of Homo antecessor as well as archaeological objects, and levels TDW4 and TDE5 yielded a late Early Pleistocene fauna, including the ungulates: Equus cf. altidens, Stephanorhinus etruscus, Dama ‘nestii’ vallonnetensis, Cervus elaphus, Eucladoceros giulii, cf. Bison voigtstedtensis, Sus scrofa and Mammuthus sp. The lower part of TD8 yielded a fauna that is very similar, and that includes also Hippopotamus. TD7 yielded remains of Ovibos or Praevibos. The lower part of the Sima del Elefante sequence yielded some remains that might represent a fauna similar to that of TD4–6. Levels TD10–11 of Gran Dolina yielded: Equus caballus, Stephanorhinus cf. hemitoechus, Sus cf. scrofa, Cervus elaphus priscus, Dama dama aff. clactoniana, cf. Hemitragus bonali, large Bos/Bison. Apart from yielding some remains of Homo heidelbergensis and archaeological objects, units TG10–11 of Galería yielded a similar fauna, that however differs in including Megaloceros verticornis dawkinsi? and in having a small Bison? Instead of the large Bos/Bison. Both associations are typical of the middle Middle Pleistocene. A single fossil from the uppermost unit of Sima del Elefante belongs probably to Stephanorhinus hemitoechus. The transition of the Early to Middle Pleistocene coincides with a fundamental change in climate; from this time onward, the 100 ky glacial cycles become a dominant feature. This transition is marked by a series of dispersal events towards Europe, including that of Homo antecessor. The absence of most glacial taxa in the Middle Pleistocene of Spain, as well as the existence of long lineages of “interglacial” taxa within Europe suggests that glaciations had a limited effect on large mammals in Spain and other parts of southern Europe. Homo antecessor may have evolved into Homo heidelbergensis and later into H. neanderthalensis surviving during glaciations in refugia in southern Europe, as did some of the ungulates.