Recycling of Badger/Fox Burrows in Late Pleistocene Loess by Hyenas at the Den Site Bad Wildungen-Biedensteg (NW, Germany): Woolly Rhinoceros Killers and Scavengers in a Mammoth Steppe Environment of Europe

Cajus Diedrich

doi:10.1155/2013/190795

Abstract

The Late Pleistocene (MIS 5c-d) Ice Age spotted hyena open air den and bone accumulation site Bad Wildungen-Biedensteg (Hesse, NW, Germany) represents the first open air loess fox/badger den site in Europe, which must have been recycled by Crocuta crocuta spelaea (Goldfuss, 1823) as a birthing den. Badger and fox remains, plus remains of their prey (mainly hare), have been found within the loess. Hyena remains from that site include parts of cub skeletons which represent 10% of the megafauna bones. Also a commuting den area existed, which was well marked by hyena faecal pellets. Most of the hyena prey bones expose crack, bite, and nibbling marks, especially the most common bones, the woolly rhinoceros Coelodonta antiquitatis (NISP = 32%). The large amount of woolly rhinoceros bones indicate hunting/scavenging specializing on this large prey by hyenas. Other important mammoth steppe hyena prey remains are from Mammuthus primigenius, Equus caballus przewalskii, Bison/Bos, Megaloceros giganteus, Cervus elaphus, and Rangifer tarandus. The few damaged bone remains of a scavenged cave bear Ursus spelaeus subsp. are unique for an open air situation. Abundant micromammal, frog, and some fish remains were concentrated in “pellets” that contain mainly mammoth steppe micromammals and also frog and fish remains that seem to originate from the nearby river/lake.

Highlights

Late Pleistocene European bone assemblages have been produced mainly by late Ice Age spotted hyena Crocuta crocuta spelaea [1] and were first recognized by Buckland [2] in the “Kuhloch Cave” (Konig-Ludwigs Cave, Bavaria, Germany) and the Kirkdale Cave (Kent, England)
The Late Pleistocene (MIS 5c-d) Ice Age spotted hyena open air den and bone accumulation site Bad Wildungen-Biedensteg (Hesse, NW, Germany) represents the first open air loess fox/badger den site in Europe, which must have been recycled by Crocuta crocuta spelaea (Goldfuss, 1823) as a birthing den
Other important mammoth steppe hyena prey remains are from Mammuthus primigenius, Equus caballus przewalskii, Bison/Bos, Megaloceros giganteus, Cervus elaphus, and Rangifer tarandus

Summary

Introduction

Late Pleistocene European bone assemblages have been produced mainly by late Ice Age spotted hyena Crocuta crocuta spelaea [1] and were first recognized by Buckland [2] in the “Kuhloch Cave” (Konig-Ludwigs Cave, Bavaria, Germany) and the Kirkdale Cave (Kent, England). More recent studies provide information on the hyena prey bone assemblages (e.g., [3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10]) as well as on the new subdivided fossil hyena den types (e.g., [11]). These identifications of three classified Ice Age den forms are important to distinguish bone accumulations made by hyenas from those accumulated by Middle Palaeolithic humans (e.g., [9, 12,13,14,15]). Hyena cave-den sites predominate in the European fossil record (e.g., Germany in [17]), open air sites may have been much more common throughout the mammoth steppe lowlands of Europe, but have been overlooked or not identified as such (cf. Westeregeln or Bottrop sites in [10, 18])

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Discussion

Conclusion