Sulfur isotopes evidence spatial ecology of Late Pleistocene ungulates in southwestern France
Résumé
Understanding prey species spatial behaviour is key to unravelling contemporary hunter-gatherer subsistence and movement patterns. Here, we use sulfur (δ 34 S), carbon (δ 13 C) and nitrogen (δ 15 N) isotope compositions of bone collagen extracted from Rangifer, Equus, Bovinae, Capreolus, and Cervus (n = 244) to explore isotope spatial and dietary niches of several key hunter-gatherer prey species from three Late Pleistocene sites in southwestern France between MIS 5 and MIS 3. Alongside morphological identification, Zooarchaeology by Mass Spectrometry (ZooMS) was used to confirm deer taxa (n = 125) allowing for a better interpretation of the isotopic data. δ 34 S analysis identifies differences in ranging sizes between ungulates with known large ranging sizes from those with small to medium size ranges. Rangifer, who, today, have large home ranges, have the largest range of δ 34 S values and lowest δ 34 S values with low to no overlap with other ungulate species through time. This indicates that Rangifer had a larger range size with a distinct isotopic area that is different to other ungulates, potentially farther inland and farther north. Bovines and Equus have largely overlapping δ 34 S values that are similar to the modern local δ 34 S value of the sites, and Cervus and Capreolus have δ 34 S values that overlap but are slightly higher than the modern δ 34 S values, potentially indicating a ranging area to the west of the sites. These results reveal that Neanderthals hunted three different groups of game who occupied different areas of the landscape.
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