Abstract
Human populations exploited coastal areas with intensity during the Mesolithic in Atlantic Europe, resulting in the accumulation of large shell middens. Northern Spain is one of the most prolific regions, and especially the so-called Asturian area. Large accumulations of shellfish led some scholars to propose the existence of intensification in the exploitation of coastal resources in the region during the Mesolithic. In this paper, shell remains (molluscs, crustaceans and echinoderms) from stratigraphic units 114 and 115 (dated to the early Mesolithic c. 9 kys cal BP) at El Mazo cave (Asturias, northern Spain) were studied in order to establish resource exploitation patterns and environmental conditions. Species representation showed that limpets, top shells and sea urchins were preferentially exploited. One-millimetre mesh screens were crucial in establishing an accurate minimum number of individuals for sea urchins and to determine their importance in exploitation patterns. Environmental conditions deduced from shell assemblages indicated that temperate conditions prevailed at the time of the occupation and the morphology of the coastline was similar to today (rocky exposed shores). Information recovered relating to species representation, collection areas and shell biometry reflected some evidence of intensification (reduced shell size, collection in lower areas of exposed shores, no size selection in some units and species) in the exploitation of coastal resources through time. However, the results suggested the existence of changes in collection strategies and resource management, and periods of intense shell collection may have alternated with times of shell stock recovery throughout the Mesolithic.
Highlights
The Mesolithic of Atlantic Europe is characterised by the formation of large shell middens in coastal locations, as a result of intensive exploitation of littoral areas by the last hunter-fisher-gatherers (GutiérrezZugasti et al 2011; Milner et al 2007)
Cold-loving species such as the periwinkle L. littorea and the limpet P. vulgata were the most abundant in shell assemblages belonging to the late Pleistocene, whilst species adapted to warmer conditions such as P. lineatus, P. depressa and Patella ulyssiponensis (Linné 1758) were predominant in Holocene sites ( P. vulgata was present in significant amounts) (Gutiérrez-Zugasti 2009; Gutiérrez-Zugasti and Cuenca-Solana 2014; Álvarez-Fernández 2011; 2013)
Results based on shell sizes from El Mazo showed that P. lineatus, P. vulgata and P. depressa (Table 3) were smaller than top shells or limpets recovered in Magdalenian and Azilian assemblages from the Cantabrian region (ÁlvarezFernández 2013; Álvarez-Fernández et al 2011; Gutiérrez-Zugasti 2011b; Ortea 1986)
Summary
The Mesolithic of Atlantic Europe is characterised by the formation of large shell middens in coastal locations, as a result of intensive exploitation of littoral areas by the last hunter-fisher-gatherers (GutiérrezZugasti et al 2011; Milner et al 2007). Studies performed at the Asturian shell midden sites of La Riera (Ortea 1986), Mazaculos II (González Morales et al 1980; GutiérrezZugasti and González-Morales 2010), La Llana (Gutiérrez-Zugasti 2009), Poza l’Egua (Arias et al 2007), El Toral III (Bello-Alonso et al 2015) and El Mazo (García-Escárzaga et al 2015) showed that limpets and topshells were intensively collected from intertidal areas of exposed shores, leading to the formation of huge shell middens. Marine resources were complemented by the exploitation of terrestrial mammal prey, including red deer, roe deer and wild boar (AndreuAlarcón 2013; Marín-Arroyo 2013; MarínArroyo and González-Morales 2009)
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