Strontium isotope evidence for Neanderthal and modern human mobility at the upper and middle palaeolithic site of Fumane Cave (Italy)

Michael P Richards,Jean-Jacques Hublin,Marcello A Mannino,Klervia Jaouen,Alessandro Dozio,Marco Peresani,Peter F Biehl

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0254848

Abstract

To investigate the mobility patterns of Neanderthals and modern humans in Europe during the Middle-to-Upper Palaeolithic transition period, we applied strontium isotope analysis to Neanderthal (n = 3) and modern human (n = 2) teeth recovered from the site of Fumane Cave in the Monti Lessini region of Northern Italy. We also measured a large number of environmental samples from the region, to establish a strontium ‘baseline’, and also micromammals (vole teeth) from the levels associated with the hominin teeth. We found that the modern humans and Neanderthals had similar strontium isotope values, and these values match the local baseline values we obtained for the site and the surrounding region. We conclude that both groups were utilizing the local mountainous region where Fumane Cave is situated, and likely the nearby Lessini highlands and Adige plains, and therefore the strontium evidence does not show differening mobility patterns between Neanderthals and modern humans at the Fumane site.

Highlights

We have little understanding of the mobility patterns of European Neanderthals, and especially if they differed from those of the first modern humans in Europe
The strontium isotope values of the 16 molars of Microtus arvalis sampled from the four stratigraphic units of origin of the human teeth are relatively homogeneous (S1 Table 6 in S1 File), with the following means and standard deviations (2σ): A11 = 0.7096±0.0008; A9 = 0.7095 ±0.0021; A3 = 0.7099±0.0004 and A2 = 0.7095±0.0007
As tooth enamel strontium is incorporated during tooth formation, and the Neanderthal and modern human teeth are from children, the strontium values will reflect both the diet of the child as well as that of the mother, especially for enamel that formed in utero or during breastfeeding

Summary

Introduction

We have little understanding of the mobility patterns of European Neanderthals, and especially if they differed from those of the first modern humans in Europe. Reconstructing mobility in archaeology is especially difficult, as it relies mainly on indirect evidence, such as determining the geological sources of stone tools, the seasons of animal exploitation (i.e. hunting), the provenance of pigments, shells and other materials introduced into the site and the inferred use of the larger landscape by looking at the density of archaeological sites, and the site sizes and uses These methods have resulted in a plethora of often diametrically opposite interpretations of Neanderthal mobility and territoriality [1,2,3,4]. It is possible to determine, usually by measuring plants and water from a region, a ‘local’ strontium isotope value (‘bioavailable’) that can be used as a comparison to the enamel strontium value from the human [7] Using this method, it is possible to determine if the tooth formed when the human was consuming food and water locally or lived elsewhere during childhood tooth formation. This method has been extensively used in archaeology to determine if individuals were ‘local’ or ‘non-local’ and with more detailed understanding of the baseline strontium variation in a region it is sometimes possible to suggest a place of origin

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion