The Potential of Micromammals for the Stratigraphy and the Timing of Human Occupations at La Roche-à-Pierrot (Saint-Césaire, France)
As micromammals are highly sensitive to changes in their habitat, variations in species representation are often used to reconstruct local environmental conditions. However, taphonomic aspects of micromammals are often overlooked, despite the fact that they can provide important information for our...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2021-10-01
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| Series: | Quaternary |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2571-550X/4/4/33 |
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| author | Loïc Lebreton Eugène Morin Brad Gravina Alexandre Michel François Bachellerie Cédric Beauval Damien Flas Véronique Laroulandie Josserand Marot Hélène Rougier Elise Tartar Dominique Todisco Isabelle Crevecoeur |
| author_facet | Loïc Lebreton Eugène Morin Brad Gravina Alexandre Michel François Bachellerie Cédric Beauval Damien Flas Véronique Laroulandie Josserand Marot Hélène Rougier Elise Tartar Dominique Todisco Isabelle Crevecoeur |
| author_sort | Loïc Lebreton |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | As micromammals are highly sensitive to changes in their habitat, variations in species representation are often used to reconstruct local environmental conditions. However, taphonomic aspects of micromammals are often overlooked, despite the fact that they can provide important information for our understanding of archaeological sites. La Roche-à-Pierrot, Saint-Césaire, is a major archaeological site for our understanding of the Middle-to-Upper Palaeolithic transition in Western Europe. Clearly documenting site formation processes, the post-depositional reworking of deposits and the sequence of human occupations is fundamental for providing a secure archaeostratigraphic context of the site. The exceptionally large accumulation of micromammals from recently excavated stratigraphic units at the site makes it possible to track variations in the density of micromammals across the stratigraphic sequence. The taphonomic analysis of micromammals demonstrates these variations are not related to a change in the main accumulation agent or post-depositional phenomena. A negative correlation between small mammal remains and archaeological material suggests that peaks in micromammal densities can potentially be correlated with periods when the site was abandoned or when human occupation was less intense, and therefore provide new data for interpreting the Saint-Césaire stratigraphic sequence. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T03:13:41Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-79de25e99d984665894b99e5f1a706a8 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2571-550X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T03:13:41Z |
| publishDate | 2021-10-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Quaternary |
| spelling | doaj.art-79de25e99d984665894b99e5f1a706a82023-11-23T10:20:53ZengMDPI AGQuaternary2571-550X2021-10-01443310.3390/quat4040033The Potential of Micromammals for the Stratigraphy and the Timing of Human Occupations at La Roche-à-Pierrot (Saint-Césaire, France)Loïc Lebreton0Eugène Morin1Brad Gravina2Alexandre Michel3François Bachellerie4Cédric Beauval5Damien Flas6Véronique Laroulandie7Josserand Marot8Hélène Rougier9Elise Tartar10Dominique Todisco11Isabelle Crevecoeur12Histoire Naturelle de l’Homme Préhistorique (HNHP), UMR 7194, Département Homme et Environnement du Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, MNHN-CNRS-UPVD, Musée de l’Homme, 75000 Paris, FranceDepartment of Anthropology, Trent University, DNA Block C, 2140 East Bank Drive, Peterborough, ON K9J 7B8, CanadaPACEA, UMR 5199, CNRS, Université de Bordeaux, MC, B2, Allée Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, CEDEX, 33615 Pessac, FrancePACEA, UMR 5199, CNRS, Université de Bordeaux, MC, B2, Allée Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, CEDEX, 33615 Pessac, FrancePACEA, UMR 5199, CNRS, Université de Bordeaux, MC, B2, Allée Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, CEDEX, 33615 Pessac, FranceArchéosphère, 10 Rue de la Rhode, 11500 Quillan, FranceService de Préhistoire, Université de Liège, Place du 20-Août 7, 4000 Liège, BelgiumPACEA, UMR 5199, CNRS, Université de Bordeaux, MC, B2, Allée Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, CEDEX, 33615 Pessac, FranceService Départemental de l’Archéologie, Conseil Départemental de Charente-Maritime, Caserne Brémond d’Ars, Petite Rue du Séminaire, 17100 Saintes, FranceDepartment of Anthropology, California State University Northridge, 18111 Nordhoff St., Northridge, CA 91330-8244, USATRACES, UMR 5608, CNRS, Université Toulouse Jean Jaurès, Maison de la Recherche, 5 Allées Antonio Machado, CEDEX 9, 31058 Toulouse, FranceIDEES, UMR 6266, Université de Rouen, 17 Rue Lavoisier, CEDEX, 76821 Mont Saint Aignan, FrancePACEA, UMR 5199, CNRS, Université de Bordeaux, MC, B2, Allée Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, CEDEX, 33615 Pessac, FranceAs micromammals are highly sensitive to changes in their habitat, variations in species representation are often used to reconstruct local environmental conditions. However, taphonomic aspects of micromammals are often overlooked, despite the fact that they can provide important information for our understanding of archaeological sites. La Roche-à-Pierrot, Saint-Césaire, is a major archaeological site for our understanding of the Middle-to-Upper Palaeolithic transition in Western Europe. Clearly documenting site formation processes, the post-depositional reworking of deposits and the sequence of human occupations is fundamental for providing a secure archaeostratigraphic context of the site. The exceptionally large accumulation of micromammals from recently excavated stratigraphic units at the site makes it possible to track variations in the density of micromammals across the stratigraphic sequence. The taphonomic analysis of micromammals demonstrates these variations are not related to a change in the main accumulation agent or post-depositional phenomena. A negative correlation between small mammal remains and archaeological material suggests that peaks in micromammal densities can potentially be correlated with periods when the site was abandoned or when human occupation was less intense, and therefore provide new data for interpreting the Saint-Césaire stratigraphic sequence.https://www.mdpi.com/2571-550X/4/4/33micromammalstaphonomydensity analysisLate Pleistocene |
| spellingShingle | Loïc Lebreton Eugène Morin Brad Gravina Alexandre Michel François Bachellerie Cédric Beauval Damien Flas Véronique Laroulandie Josserand Marot Hélène Rougier Elise Tartar Dominique Todisco Isabelle Crevecoeur The Potential of Micromammals for the Stratigraphy and the Timing of Human Occupations at La Roche-à-Pierrot (Saint-Césaire, France) Quaternary micromammals taphonomy density analysis Late Pleistocene |
| title | The Potential of Micromammals for the Stratigraphy and the Timing of Human Occupations at La Roche-à-Pierrot (Saint-Césaire, France) |
| title_full | The Potential of Micromammals for the Stratigraphy and the Timing of Human Occupations at La Roche-à-Pierrot (Saint-Césaire, France) |
| title_fullStr | The Potential of Micromammals for the Stratigraphy and the Timing of Human Occupations at La Roche-à-Pierrot (Saint-Césaire, France) |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Potential of Micromammals for the Stratigraphy and the Timing of Human Occupations at La Roche-à-Pierrot (Saint-Césaire, France) |
| title_short | The Potential of Micromammals for the Stratigraphy and the Timing of Human Occupations at La Roche-à-Pierrot (Saint-Césaire, France) |
| title_sort | potential of micromammals for the stratigraphy and the timing of human occupations at la roche a pierrot saint cesaire france |
| topic | micromammals taphonomy density analysis Late Pleistocene |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2571-550X/4/4/33 |
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