Archaeofaunal Assemblages Research Articles

Earliest Mule Remains from Early Bronze Age Central Anatolia.

This paper discusses the discoveries of early donkey and the earliest mule remains in Central Anatolia from the site Derekutuğun. This site represents the remains of a village dating back to the Early Bronze Age and Assyrian Trade Colonies period, associated with mining. The archaeofaunal assemblage was studied by the author and his team using classical archaeozoological methods. The dental remains of the Equidae found at Derekutuğun have been re-examined and are described in this article. The dental evidence indicates that donkeys, and possibly the earliest mules ever found in Central Anatolia, were kept at this site. Although the paper is based on the archaeozoological remains, written sources from the period also support the faunal identification. Derekutuğun was a small settlement that specialized in processing copper ore, and which was an important hub for a trade network because of its extensive mining and extraction operations.

Computer vision enables taxon-specific identification of African carnivore tooth marks on bone

Taphonomic works aim at discovering how paleontological and archaeofaunal assemblages were formed. They also aim at determining how hominin fossils were preserved or destroyed. Hominins and other mammal carnivores have been co-evolving, at least during the past two million years, and their potential interactions determined the evolution of human behavior. In order to understand all this, taxon-specific carnivore agency must be effectively identified in the fossil record. Until now, taphonomists have been able to determine, to some degree, hominin and carnivore inputs in site formation, and their interactions in the modification of part of those assemblages. However, the inability to determine agency more specifically has hampered the development of taphonomic research, whose methods are virtually identical to those used several decades ago (lagged by a high degree of subjectivity). A call for more objective and agent-specific methods would be a major contribution to the advancement of taphonomic research. Here, we present one of these advances. The use of computer vision (CV) on a large data set of images of tooth marks has enabled the objective discrimination of taxon-specific carnivore agency up to 88% of the testing sample. We highlight the significance of this method in an interdisciplinary interplay between traditional taphonomic-paleontological analysis and artificial intelligence-based computer science. The new questions that can be addressed with this will certainly bring important changes to several ideas on important aspects of the human evolutionary process.

Diet breadth and biodiversity in the pre-hispanic South-Central Andes (Western South America) during the Holocene: An exploratory analysis and review

This paper presents an exploratory study on the taxonomic diversity of pre-Hispanic archaeofaunas in the South-Central Andes (SCA; western South America) from the Pleistocene-Holocene boundary to the Late-Holocene. The SCA is a complex of diverse environments and has undergone distinct climate events for the last 13,000 years, such as the occurrence of warmer and drier conditions in the Middle-Holocene. The South-Central Andean area was part of the larger Andes interaction area, which was a primary center for animal and plant domestication and the emergence of agro-pastoralist economies. Since subsistence was key to these processes, the SCA provides a relevant case study on the interactions among environment, foodways and sociocultural evolution. Taxonomic diversity was used here as a proxy for diet breadth. A total of 268 archaeofaunal assemblages were sampled from the zooarchaeological literature. Reviewed variables included the cultural chronology and spatial coordinates of the assemblages, as well as the presence and abundance of taxa at the family rank. Taxonomic diversity covered two dimensions: composition (families present in each assemblage) and structure (quantitative relationships among taxa), which was measured through richness (NTAXA), ubiquity and relative abundance (NISP based rank-order). Despite the uneven distribution of samples, the analyses revealed the following trends: (1) a moderate relationship between NTAXA and distance from coastline for most of the Holocene; (2) a potential decrease in assemblage richness for coastal ecoregions during the Late-Holocene; and (3) a generalized increase in the relative abundance of Camelidae.

Identification and quantification of projectile impact marks on bone: new experimental insights using osseous points

Shifts in projectile technology potentially document human evolutionary milestones, such as adaptations for different environments and settlement dynamics. A relatively direct proxy for projectile technology is projectile impact marks (PIM) on archaeological bones. Increasing awareness and publication of experimental data sets have recently led to more identifications of PIM in various contexts, but diagnosing PIM from other types of bone-surface modifications, quantifying them, and inferring point size and material from the bone lesions need more substantiation. Here, we focus on PIM created by osseous projectiles, asking whether these could be effectively identified and separated from lithic-tipped weapons. We further discuss the basic question raised by recent PIM research in zooarchaeology: why PIM evidence is so rare in archaeofaunal assemblages (compared to other human-induced marks), even when they are explicitly sought. We present the experimental results of shooting two ungulate carcasses with bone and antler points, replicating those used in the early Upper Paleolithic of western Eurasia. Half of our hits resulted in PIM, confirming that this modification may have been originally abundant. However, we found that the probability of a skeletal element to be modified with PIM negatively correlates with its preservation potential, and that much of the produced bone damage would not be identifiable in a typical Paleolithic faunal assemblage. This quantification problem still leaves room for an insightful qualitative study of PIM. We complement previous research in presenting several diagnostic marks that retain preservation potential and may be used to suggest osseous, rather than lithic, projectile technology.

Tracking Early Hominin Foraging Behavior at DS Site (Bed I, Olduvai Gorge)

Academic discussions about African Early Stone Age site formation, animal carcass acquisition by hominins, the regularity of meat consumption or the use of central places have mainly relied on taphonomic studies of a few archaeofaunal assemblages, such as FLK Zinj (1.84 Ma [million years] ago, Olduvai Gorge Bed I, Tanzania). The DS site lies on the same paleosurface as FLK Zinj and constitutes an equally well-preserved, vertically-discrete deposit. The site has been extensively excavated in recent years (554 m²) and represents an invaluable opportunity to address key and long debated issues regarding early hominin lifeways with new approaches based on using robust and reliable statistical methods, including machine learning. Taphonomic studies can also greatly benefit from including the spatial component in the interpretations of a site’s formation and functionality. The results of the taphonomic and spatial study of DS point to the following behavioral components of hominin lifeways with regard to their foraging strategies: 1) regular primary access to animal carcasses; 2) selective animal carcass acquisition; and 3) collective animal carcass consumption in central-provisioning places. These features also point to cooperation and food sharing. The evidence from DS indicates that early Homo showed significant behavioral complexity relative to extant primates and a cohesive social structure. Two more newly discovered anthropogenically supported sites from the same period (PTK and AGS, Bed I Olduvai Gorge) that are currently being analyzed will soon shed further light on these adaptations.

Climate change and pulse migration: intermittent Chugach Inuit occupation of glacial fiords on the Kenai Coast, Alaska

For millennia, Inuit peoples of the Arctic and Subarctic have been challenged by the impacts of climate change on the abundance of key subsistence species. Responses to climate-induced declines in animal populations included switching to alternative food sources and/or migrating to regions of greater availability. We examine these dynamics for the Chugach Inuit (Sugpiat) people of southern coastal Alaska by synthesizing a large body of evidence from archeological sites, including radiocarbon dates and archaeofaunal assemblages, and by applying contemporary knowledge of glaciomarine ecosystems, spatial patterns of resource richness, and ocean-climate induced regime shifts in the Gulf of Alaska. We hypothesize that Chugach groups migrated from Cook Inlet and Prince William Sound to the Kenai Peninsula during periods of low sea surface temperatures (SSTs) to harvest harbor seals, which were seasonally aggregated near tidewater glaciers during pupping season, as well as piscivorous seabirds, Pacific cod, and other species that thrive under cool ocean conditions. During warming phases, the Chugach returned to Cook Inlet and Prince William Sound to fish for salmon and other species that abound during higher SSTs. Drivers of this coupled human-natural system of repeated (pulse) migration include the Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO), the dominant pattern of sea surface temperatures in the North Pacific that has been shown to generate step-like regime shifts in the marine food web; and coastal glaciers that structure the functioning of fiord ecosystems and support high levels of biological productivity. The culturally-constructed Chugach niche in the glaciomarine habitat of the Gulf of Alaska was based on intergenerationally transmitted ecological knowledge that enabled a resilient, mobile response to climate and resource variation.

Reassessing the role of carnivores in the formation of FLK North 3 (Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania): A pilot taphonomic analysis using Artificial Intelligence tools

FLK North (FLK N) (Bed I, Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania) is one of the best examples of a palimpsest where felids, hyenids and hominins made use of the same space without or with minimal interaction between hominins and the other two carnivores. Felids have been interpreted as the main accumulators and carcass consumers followed by frequent hyenid intervention. The presence of hominins at this site has been documented through the discovery of stone tools. Here, we test previous taphonomic interpretations of this site through the application of Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools (computer vision applied to bidimensional images of tooth pits) to taxonomically discriminate carnivore-made tooth marks. The bones we analyzed constitute a small sample, being a preliminary study of bone surface modifications (BSM) through the application of AI to a sample of the FLK N archaeofaunal assemblage (mostly to Level 3 fossils), pending access to the larger excavated collections. The results obtained in the present study show that the marks analyzed have been generated both by hyenids and felids. The slight predominance of hyena tooth marks is expected, since the bone sample used is dominated by long limb bones, and hyenas are the most likely agent causing long bone breakage, although felids also break bones of carcasses smaller than 150 kg as documented in the site. Felid impact, in at least three cases, is documented with tooth marks imprinted by felids and hyenas occurring on the same specimens. Felid-hyenid interaction is, thus, documented though the deep learning methods applied. The limited number of specimens where both agents are documented suggest that both hyenids and felids were independently breaking a substantial part of the bones at FLK N. This preliminarily modifies previous interpretations that attributed most long bone fragmentation exclusively to hyenas.

The distribution of seabird wings recovered from Viking Age domestic midden deposits in Skagafjörður, North Iceland

Bird bones from domestic midden deposits on Hegranes, North Iceland, dating from AD 870-1104, are mostly puffin (Fratercula arctica) and guillemot (Uria aalge)—diving seabirds in the Alcidae family. We find that Alcidae wings are significantly overrepresented compared to legs, and that in particular, proximal wing bones are systematically more common than if whole birds were deposited in the middens. Trends in the wing-leg index and distal wing index suggest that while bird bones are commonly recovered from these domestic middens and generally make up about a quarter of the faunal assemblages, there is evidence for specific species selection between puffin and guillemot. The disproportionate number of wings in the Viking Age middens points to some kind of deposition strategy that favors wings over other body parts. Birds seem to be much more common in Viking Age archaeofaunal assemblages from Hegranes than those from other parts of Iceland. All of this suggests that more specialized butchery and disposal practice is derived from specific cultural practices.

Faunal Assemblages From Lower Bed I (Oldupai Gorge, Tanzania)

Palaeobiological and archeological excavations at the site of Ewass Oldupa, found in the western Plio-Pleistocene rift basin of Oldupai Gorge (also Olduvai Gorge), Tanzania, revealed rich fossiliferous levels and the earliest remains of human activity at Oldupai Gorge, dated to 2 million years ago. This paper provides zooarchaeological taxonomic, taphonomic, and behavioral analyses, applying several methods to explore the setting in which the assemblage was formed. We identified agency behind bone surface modifications, such as cut, tooth and percussion marks, and determined the frequency of carnivore tooth marks as well as their distribution on both discrete specimens and across species. In addition, our work revealed co-occurrence of modifications to include butchering marks and carnivore tooth marks. Ravaging levels were estimated as percentage. The faunal accumulation from Ewass Oldupa contains two cut marked specimens, together with low degrees of percussion and carnivore tooth marks, moderate ravaging, and diagenetic changes suggestive of water flow. Thus, multiple lines of evidence indicate a palimpsest accumulation. Taxonomic diversity is high, with up to 22 taxa representing diverse habitats, ranging from open grassland to wooded bushlands, as well as moist mosaics during Bed I. Overall, this archaeo-faunal assemblage speaks to increased behavioral versatility among Oldowan hominins and interactions with the carnivore guild.

Neanderthals\u2019 hunting seasonality inferred from combined cementochronology, mesowear, and microwear analysis: case studies from the Alpine foreland in Italy

Herbivore teeth are a valuable source of information for inferring the hunting season of past hunter-gatherers, the spatial–temporal organization of their activities, their socio-economic organization, and their adaptation to the seasonal fluctuation of the resources. Numberless of studies have been conducted on Neanderthals across Eurasia, but only few of them rely on the application of cementochronology and tooth wear analyses combined to obtain information about the ungulate paleodiet, paleoenvironments, and the time range of the mortality events. In this study, we present the results achieved though the combination of these two high-resolution techniques applied to large and medium-sized herbivore teeth yielded by two Middle Paleolithic sites in the north-east of Italy. We combined the two methodologies with the aim to overcome any possible lack of information, due to the use of a single method. This study addressed to analyze the material coming from two caves in the Venetian region, De Nadale and San Bernardino, and to produce data supporting the interpretation of the origin of the two archaeofaunal assemblages as a result of seasonal hunting events that took place mainly in winter. In this specific geographic and environmental context, our data gain a better understanding of Neanderthal subsistence strategies and occupational patterns.

Determining the diagenetic paths of archaeofaunal assemblages and their palaeoecology through artificial intelligence: an application to Oldowan sites from Olduvai Gorge (Tanzania)

ABSTRACTThe implementation of deep‐learning methods to the taphonomic analysis of the microscopic modification of bone‐surface modifications exposed to different chemical diagenetic pathways can effectively discriminate between acidic and alkaline soil properties, indirectly reflecting different ecological conditions. Here we use this novel method to assess the sedimentary conditions of two of the oldest Oldowan archaeofaunal records (DS and PTK, Bed I) from Olduvai Gorge Bed I in Tanzania. We show how the results support different diagenetic conditions for both penecontemporaneous sites, which are appropriate for their respective locations on the palaeolandscape to which they belonged. We also show how geochemical analyses of the clay deposit that embedded both sites indicate a similar soil pH divergence. PTK was formed on an alluvial sloping surface affected by rills but draining efficiently, which resulted in alkaline soil conditions, that optimised bone‐surface preservation. DS occurred in a more depressed area that underwent intermittent flooding, affecting soil chemistry by creating more acidic conditions. This impacted on bone surfaces by dynamically modifying mark morphology. This deep‐learning approach has relevance for the interpretation of the local palaeoecological conditions of both assemblages and their respective depositional loci. The results presented here open a new window to the incremental information gain through the use of artificial intelligence methods in taphonomic and palaeoecological research.

Rituales de terminación y consumo en el Palacio 6J2 de La Blanca: una perspectiva zooarqueológica del Clásico Terminal en el Petén guatemalteco

La Blanca is an urban settlement located in the department of Petén, Guatemala. The site played an important role due to its strategic location alongside the Mopán River basin. This paper presents results of the zooarchaeological studies conducted on this archaeological site during the Classic Terminal period (850-1000 A.D.), a time of social upheaval in which the elite of La Blanca left the city and new inhabitants occupied the rooms of its monumental palaces. The animal remains analyzed came from the excavation of the south wing of Palace 6J2 at the Acropolis and represent a unique opportunity to understand the faunal use and management in a period of social and economic crisis. The animals deposited in these rooms pointed to the ritual character of the assemblage as well as the importance of the nearby environment as a means of providing resources for subsistence. The study of the archaeofaunal assemblages represents a first approach to provide clues about the economic importance of the animals and their role in ritual activities during a so debated period in Maya history as the Terminal Classic in the Lowlands.

Distinguishing the taphonomic signature of wolves from humans and other predators on small prey assemblages

The study of human subsistence strategies in prehistoric hunter-gatherer communities is essential to understanding the evolution of human behaviour. An important topic of interest is the expansion of dietary breadth, resulting in the procurement of a larger number of small game species. However, to make accurate interpretations of human subsistence, the correct identification of the agents responsible for archaeofaunal assemblages is crucial, and actualistic studies that establish the taphonomic signature of the different predators are indispensable. Despite being one of the most ubiquitous carnivores in prehistoric archaeological sites, the role of wolves (Canis lupus) as agents responsible for small-prey accumulations has never been examined. The aims of this study are to analyse the taphonomic patterns left by wolves on rabbit remains and to put forward a series of criteria that can help distinguish assemblages produced by this carnivore from those accumulated by people or by other predators. Our results reveal that wolves ingest and consume the whole rabbit carcass, with the consequence that all rabbit remains accumulated by wolves come from the scats. The referential framework provided in this study will make it possible to discriminate wolves as agents of fossil rabbit accumulations.

Site occupation dynamics of early modern humans at Misliya Cave (Mount Carmel, Israel): Evidence from the spatial taphonomy of faunal remains

Space use in Middle Paleolithic (MP) camps has been suggested as a source of information on the intensity and repetition of occupations and, by extension, of demographics. In the Levant, clear evidence for differential intrasite use and maintenance was important in viewing the late MP Neanderthal sites as base camps inhabited for a significant duration, relative to the Early MP (EMP). We test this model with the rich faunal assemblage from the EMP (>140 ka) site of Misliya Cave, Mount Carmel, Israel. Excavations in Misliya yielded a large and diverse lithic assemblage, combustion features, and a modern human maxilla, together with a large archaeofaunal assemblage that we use as a spatial marker. We analyzed the distribution of bone items with variable taphonomic properties (anthropogenic, biogenic, and abiotic bone-surface modifications) in a hearth-related context, both by comparing grid squares and point patterns. Both analyses are largely congruent. They indicate repeated and consistent use of the site's space that includes hearth-related consumption activities and peripheral activities further away, albeit with little evidence for site maintenance. Thus, the Misliya results display a mixed signal of clear around-the-fire pattern and differential space use in the EMP that is reminiscent of the much later MP sites in the Levant, but without the more elaborate camp maintenance. More case studies and detailed proxies are needed before we can fine-tune our understanding of camp structure in the Levantine MP and its bearing to site occupation dynamics.

The experimental butchering of coypu (Myocastor coypus): Implications for the analysis of the archaeofaunal record

Coypu (Myocastor coypus) is a medium-small sized rodent which was exploited during the Late Holocene in the Humid Pampas and other regions of southern South America. Therefore, this paper aims to broaden our knowledge about archaeofaunal assemblages using data collected from five events of experimental butchery. These events were carried out by nutrieros (coypu hunters) and hunters from Buenos Aires province (Argentina) and were directed towards the extraction of some consumable resources from the carcass: hide and meat. Butchers used experimental flakes and tools made from ortoquartzite of the Sierras Bayas Group. The butchering process involved different tasks on the carcasses such as skinning, evisceration, disarticulation, and cutting into small pieces. We controlled the time involved in each experimental event and registered the weights of different byproducts. Resulting cut marks and fractures located on cranial and postcranial bones were associated with skinning, dismemberment, and segmentation for cooking. From this kind of actualistic study, we emphasized the significance of butcher’s skill to process small mammals and its consequences as resulting marks. In addition, we gathered information about the potential of exploitation of the prey in the present. Moreover, our study supports some interpretations made upon the archaeological record, questions others and alerts about equifinality.

Small prey exploitation during the final Gravettian in the northeast of the Iberian Peninsula: The case of Level D from Arbreda Cave

AbstractArbreda Cave is one of the most important sites in the Reclau Caves complex (Serinyà, north‐east Iberian Peninsula). Its stratigraphy reveals that the cave was intensively occupied during the Upper Palaeolithic. As in other archaeological sites in the western Mediterranean regions, a shift towards an intensification in small prey exploitation has been observed over the course of this period. This trend is indicated by the presence of large quantities of small mammal remains, mainly rabbits, in the archaeofaunal assemblages. However, the anthropogenic origin of these bone accumulations requires to be proved through the detailed taphonomic analysis because their presence in the archaeological record may be consequence of the activity of different agents. On this question, neotaphonomic studies have become a valuable tool with which to distinguish the taphonomic signatures produced by terrestrial carnivores, birds of prey, and humans.Although most researchers agree on the importance of small prey in the human diet during this period, this issue has not yet been resolved. Because data are still scarce, subsistence in some Upper Palaeolithic episodes, such as the final Gravettian, is not well understood. The aim of this paper is to establish the origin of the small mammal prey assemblages from Level D of Arbreda Cave and to assess the importance of these animals for the subsistence of humans in western Mediterranean regions. This level has been dated to ca. 25–20 kyr 14C BP and is mainly contemporary with the palaeoenvironmental cold conditions derived from the Greenland Stadial 3. The results of this study indicate that Level D small mammal prey assemblages have a remarkable anthropogenic footprint. Rabbits were intensively exploited, but other small mammals, such as hedgehogs, were also part of the human diet. The animal carcasses were brought whole to the cave, where they were butchered, cooked, and consumed. In addition, marrow exploitation was also practiced in the case of the rabbits.Although at Arbreda Cave, ungulates were a primary resource in the subsistence of hunter–gatherers; small prey also played an important role in human diet during the final Gravettian.

Early Pastoral Economies and Herding Transitions in Eastern Eurasia

While classic models for the emergence of pastoral groups in Inner Asia describe mounted, horse-borne herders sweeping across the Eurasian Steppes during the Early or Middle Bronze Age (ca. 3000–1500 BCE), the actual economic basis of many early pastoral societies in the region is poorly characterized. In this paper, we use collagen mass fingerprinting and ancient DNA analysis of some of the first stratified and directly dated archaeofaunal assemblages from Mongolia’s early pastoral cultures to undertake species identifications of this rare and highly fragmented material. Our results provide evidence for livestock-based, herding subsistence in Mongolia during the late 3rd and early 2nd millennia BCE. We observe no evidence for dietary exploitation of horses prior to the late Bronze Age, ca. 1200 BCE – at which point horses come to dominate ritual assemblages, play a key role in pastoral diets, and greatly influence pastoral mobility. In combination with the broader archaeofaunal record of Inner Asia, our analysis supports models for widespread changes in herding ecology linked to the innovation of horseback riding in Central Asia in the final 2nd millennium BCE. Such a framework can explain key broad-scale patterns in the movement of people, ideas, and material culture in Eurasian prehistory.

Neanderthal ecology and the exploitation of cervids and bovids at the onset of MIS4: A study on De Nadale cave, Italy

North-eastern Italy was a familiar region for Neanderthal groups, as attested by over 20 Middle Palaeolithic multi-layered sites in caves, rockshelters and at the open, investigated during the last decades. Of this large record, evidence pointing for human frequentation during to the Marine Isotopic Stage 4 is documented at a very ephemeral level. Here we contribute to shed light on a so sparse context through the presentation of De Nadale Cave, a single-layered Quina Mousterian site located in the Berici Hills and dated to 70.2 + 1/-0.9 ka BP. In the following article, zooarchaeological results are presented with important implications in hunting behaviour and subsistence strategies. The scarcity of comparative data from MIS 4 sites in continental and peninsular Italy does not provide hints for evaluating the significance of De Nadale in Neanderthal land-use, rather discussing differences on a diachronic scale with MIS 3 Middle Palaeolithic archaeofaunal assemblages in the same region.

Sex and age‐biased exploitation and metric characterization of medium‐sized deer in the lower Paraná wetland, South America

AbstractIn this paper, we present an analysis of the exploitation of medium‐sized deer in the lower Paraná wetland by pre‐Columbian hunter‐gatherers. To achieve this goal, we developed an osteometric frame of reference for the proper identification of hunted medium‐sized deer, and the sex and age of captured individuals. An analysis of 13 archaeofaunal assemblages showed that Ozotoceros bezoarticus (“pampas deer”) was the medium‐sized deer that was hunted with exclusivity. The presence of Mazama gouazoubira (“brown brocket deer”; “gray brocket deer”), which could have been another potentially hunted medium‐sized deer, is absent from the record, although this area is indicated as being its southernmost distribution range in South America. These results restrict the distribution of this species to a more northern sector of this large wetland. The hunted individuals of O. bezoarticus are all older than 2 years of age, and preferentially males, although some methodological bias could be influencing these results. Issues related to sex‐age selectivity in capturing these animals are discussed according to the development of conservation strategies for local resources.

Constraining time and ecology on the Zinj paleolandscape: Microwear and mesowear analyses of the archaeofaunal remains of FLK Zinj and DS (Bed I), compared to FLK North (Bed I) and BK (Bed II) at Olduvai Gorge (Tanzania)

Defining the time that any given archaeofaunal assemblage took to be accumulated is challenging. Understanding the time variable is crucial to interpret how early sites were formed and what these sites represent in terms of hominin behavior. Two complementary dental analysis techniques (microwear and mesowear) have been used to understand dietary niches of ungulates. Microwear has also specifically been used to detect the character of occupations at archaeological sites. Here, we apply these techniques to a selection of Olduvai sites. Microwear and mesowear analyses on bovid teeth from a set of anthropogenic sites (FLK Zinj, DS, BK) and a carnivore palimpsest (FLK North) yielded different results. Microwear data from the three anthropogenic sites are similar, reflecting short, seasonal occupations, in contrast with the carnivore assemblage, which suggests a more prolonged period of deposition. The similar microwear signal in the two pene-contemporaneous sites of FLK Zinj and DS is encouraging, but caution in its interpretation is applied because of limited tooth enamel preservation and the resulting small sample size. The results shown here must be considered as a baseline for future and more extensive studies. Both microwear and mesowear analyses show that the most common bovid taxa in the Bed I sites exhibit mixed feeding signals. This reinforces the caution about interpretations of dietary niches of extinct ungulates based on their modern counterparts and emphasizes that for some taxa, the adoption of a browsing or grazing diet is context (time and locus) specific.