Palaeontological data about the small vertebrate assemblage from the Late Pleistocene of Kaldar Cave (Khorramabad Valley, Iran)

• Main Authors: Rey-Rodríguez, Ivan, Lopez-García, Juan Manuel, Blain, Hugues-Alexandre, Stoetzel, Emmanuelle, Denys, Christiane, Fernández-García, Mónica, Tumung, L., Ollé, Andreu, Bazgir, Behrouz
• Other Authors: Histoire naturelle de l'Homme préhistorique (HNHP), Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (MNHN)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université de Perpignan Via Domitia (UPVD), Università degli Studi di Ferrara (UniFE), Institut Catala de Paleoecologia Humana I Evolucio Social (IPHES), Universitat Rovira i Virgili, Institut de Systématique, Evolution, Biodiversité (ISYEB ), Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (MNHN)-École pratique des hautes études (EPHE), Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Sorbonne Université (SU)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université des Antilles (UA), PhD scholarships funded by the Erasmus Mundus Program
• Format: Conference Object
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2018
• Subjects: [SHS.ARCHEO]Humanities and Social Sciences/Archaeology and Prehistory; [SDU.STU.PG]Sciences of the Universe [physics]/Earth Sciences/Paleontology; [SDE.BE]Environmental Sciences/Biodiversity and Ecology; Boa; eurasian eagle-owl
• Online Access: https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02402369

International audience Kaldar Cave is located in the Central Zagros (Khorramabad Valley, Iran), the site was occupied from the Pleistocene (with lithic tools from Middle and Upper Paleolithic) to the Holocene (with Neolithic archaeological remains). Small vertebrates come from Layer 4, attributed to the Upper Paleolithic, and Layer 5 (sub-layers 7 and 7II), attributed to the Middle Paleolithic. The 14C dates from Layer 4 (sub-layers 5 and5II) produced results in the ranges of 38,650–36,750 cal. BP, 44,200–42,350 cal. BP and 54,400–46,050 cal. BP, respectively. The small-vertebrates assemblage is composed of five Arvicolinae, three Cricetinae, two Gliridae, two Gerbillinae, two Murinae taxa, a toad, an agamid lizard, a gecko, a skink, a lacertid, a glass lizard, a sand boa and possibly six types of colubrine snakes. Late Pleistocene sub-layers 5II and Layer 7II have enough remains for the paleoclimatic inferences. A preliminary taphonomic analysis showed an important number of digested elements. A Category 3 predator could primarily be assumed, such as the tawny owl (Strix aluco) or the Eurasian eagle owl (Bubo bubo). The rodent assemblage indicates an environment surrounding the cave mainly composed of open dry steppes, indicated by the most abundant taxa, Microtus gr. socialis and Meriones spp. Together with these taxa, Murinae species indicate the presence of a certain vegetation cover. Also, most of the herpetofauna identified specimens (Agamidae, Eryx sp. and Elapidae) live in savannahs, steppes and deserts, with a way of life always linked with warm arid areas in rocky or sandy environments.