Hyaenas and early humans in the latest Early Pleistocene of South-Western Europe

Journal article

The Early Pleistocene (2.58–0.78 Ma) was a period of major evolutionary changes in the hominin lineage. The progressive consolidation of bipedal locomotion, alongside increases in cranial capacity and behavioural flexibility, allowed early Homo to exploit an increasing diversity of resources and environmental settings within the changing landscapes of East Africa and beyond. These complex processes were not necessarily linear or spatially uniform, given the technological diversity documented, particularly during the Oldowan–Acheulean transition. In this paper, we argue that human populations experienced a considerable demographic expansion from c.1.7–1.5 Ma onwards, expressed in the number, size, density, and distribution of archaeological sites. These patterns resulted from the interplay of high-yielding animal resource exploitation strategies, technological investment, prosocial behaviours as well as increasingly structured land use patterns. A more consolidated hominin demographic structure led to the extinction of large sympatric carnivore species, while larger group sizes would have led to more successful Out-of-Africa dispersals

Authors: Linares-Matás, GJ; Fernández Ruiz, N; Haber Uriarte, M; López Martínez, M; Walker, MJ

• Publication status: Published
• Peer review status: Peer reviewed
• Publisher: Nature Research
• Journal: Scientific Reports
• Volume: 11
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 24036-24036
• Article number: 24036
• Publication date: 2021-12-15
• DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-03547-7
• EISSN: 2045-2322
• ISSN: 2045-2322
• Language: English
• Keywords: Magdalenian; Early Pleistocene; Taphonomy; Geology; Hyena; Cave; Acheulean; Archaeology; Predation; Geography; Assemblage (archaeology); Zooarchaeology; Pleistocene; Paleontology; Carnivore; Crocuta crocuta