Wild boar (Sus scrofa scrofa) hunting and exploitation strategies during the Mesolithic at Les Cabônes (Ranchot Jura, France), layer 3

Abstract

Wild boar (Sus scrofa scrofa) is one of the key subsistence resources, together with red deer (Cervus elaphus) during the Mesolithic period in Western Europe. However, the hunting strategies and exploitation patterns involved are still only sparsely documented. The meticulous recovery techniques during excavation and the good preservation of the faunal material from Mesolithic layer 3 of “Les Cabônes” rockshelter (Ranchot, Jura), dated between 8200 and 7300cal BC, offered the opportunity to analyze a large sample of wild boar remains, including a high proportion of teeth. The present paper focuses on the reconstruction of wild boar mortality profiles with a reappraisal of the aging methods based on tooth eruption and wear stages. The validity of available reference data sets and their application to archaeological samples is also discussed. The results show that Mesolithic hunters at “Les Cabônes” mostly targeted sounders, i.e. sows with their piglets, ensuring a steady food supply and occasionally solitary males that would certainly provide a greater amount of meat and grease per individual, as well as ivory from tusks. The carcasses of hunted animals were transported to the site either complete or semi-complete on a regular (multi-seasonal) basis, to be butchered and probably consumed onsite. Finally, comparisons with regional data are discussed in terms of patterns of site occupation.