Palaeoecological context for the extinction of the Neanderthals: A small mammal study of Stratigraphic Unit V of the El Salt site, Alcoi, eastern Spain

• Published in: Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology
• Main Authors: Fagoaga, Ana, Laplana, César, Marquina-Blasco, Rafael, Machado, Jorge, Marín-Monfort, María Dolores, Crespo, Vicente D., Hernández, Cristo M., Mallol, Carolina, Galván, Bertila, Ruiz-Sanchez, Francisco J.
• Other Authors: Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (España), European Commission, Universidad de Valencia, Generalitat Valenciana, Secretaría de Educación Superior, Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación (Ecuador), Universidad de La Laguna
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier 2021
• Subjects: Neanderthals; Small mammals; Iberian Peninsula; El Salt; Extinction; Palaeoclimatology; Microtus arvalis
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10261/244679; https://doi.org/10.1016/j.palaeo.2021.110221; https://doi.org/10.13039/501100003329; https://doi.org/10.13039/501100000780; https://doi.org/10.13039/501100004299; https://doi.org/10.13039/501100003359

El Salt is an important reference site for understanding the extinction of Neanderthal populations in the eastern Iberian Peninsula during MIS 3. In this paper, we describe the small mammal assemblage from Stratigraphic Unit V, the youngest unit with evidence of human presence, based on nearly 1300 specimens. A total of seven rodents (Microtus arvalis, Microtus duodecimcostatus, Microtus cabrerae, Sciurus vulgaris, Arvicola sapidus, Eliomys quercinus and Apodemus sylvaticus), three insectivores (Talpa occidentalis, Crocidura sp., Sorex sp.) and one lagomorph (Oryctolagus cf. cuniculus) were identified. Palaeocological analyses point to drier conditions in this part of the stratigraphic sequence, supporting the hypothesis that an aridification scenario may have played a role in the extinction of the Neanderthal groups inhabiting this region of the Iberian Peninsula. Research at El Salt is funded by the Spanish Government project HAR2015-68321-P (MINECO FEDER/UE), UV-INV_AE17-708551 (University of Valencia) and Conselleria d'Educació, Investigació, Cultura i Esports from the Valencian government. This investigation was also carried out thanks to the Prometeo Project of the Secretariat for Higher Education, Science, Technology and Innovation from Ecuador and the University of La Laguna (Tenerife, Spain). Peer reviewed