The Zooarchaeology of Neolithic farmers: Herding and hunting on the Dalmatian coast of Croatia

Abstract

Archaeofaunal remains (n = 41,081) from six Neolithic villages in northern Dalmatia indicate the intensification of livestock management from 6000 to 4700 cal BC through changes in the demographic and species compositions of livestock herds that coincide with larger cultural and economic developments in the region. The majority of animal bone at each Neolithic site consisted of sheep and goats. Though cattle and pigs were minor contributors to Early or Middle Neolithic assemblages, both are more prominent in the Late Neolithic. Furthermore, wild species typically range from 4 to 10% of faunal assemblages in open air villages, regardless of phase, and the wild species contain a significant proportion of roe deer (Capreolus capreolus). We suggest the shift in the proportions of domestic animal species during the Neolithic signifies a change in management strategies that is also visible in other proxies (e.g., lipid residues), and the presence of roe deer at these sites results from a variety of behavioral responses by farming communities to their changing agropastoral practices and climatic shifts identified in the region.