La grotte de Fouvent, dit l’Abri Cuvier (Fouvent-le-Bas, Haute-Saône, France) : analyse taphonomique d’un repaire d’hyènes du Pléistocène supérieur (OIS 3)

• Published in: Paléo
• Main Authors: Fourvel, Jean-Baptiste, Fosse, Philippe, Fernandez, Philippe, Antoine, Pierre-Olivier
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: French
• Published: Musée national de Préhistoire 2015
• Subjects: Fouvent; repaire d’hyènes; accumulation osseuse; OIS3; taphonomie; paléoécologie; Hyena den; Bone accumulation; Taphonomy; Palaeoecology; archeo; geo; Giganteus; Canis lupus; Gulo gulo; Rangifer tarandus
• Online Access: http://journals.openedition.org/paleo/2747

The palaeontological site of Fouvent (Fouvent-le-Bas, Haute-Saône, France) is a fissure-filling bone accumulation known from the beginning of the XIXth century. This assemblage is at the origin of palaeontological (description of fossil hyena by Cuvier, first record of French wolverine) and taphonomical advances (first carnivore den characterization). This paper presents the analysis of 14 977 bone remains from both the historical collection (1842) and recent excavations (between 1989 and 1992). A faunal list of 19 mammalian species has been identified: 11 carnivore species (Crocuta crocuta spelaea, Panthera (Leo) spelaea, Ursus spelaeus, Canis lupus, Vulpes vulpes, cf. Alopex, Gulo gulo, Meles meles, Martes sp., Mustela eversmanii, Mustela sp.) and 8 large ungulate species (Mammuthus primigenius, Coelodonta antiquitatis, Megaloceros giganteus, Cervus elaphus, Rangifer tarandus, Equus germanicus, Bos primigenius and/or Bison priscus). The analysis of cave hyenas from Fouvent allows us to precise characteristics of an OIS3 population and to discuss population structure. The study of ungulate populations allows us to describe prey diversity (in terms of species and individual age). Prey skeletal part distribution, bone fragmentation, consumption morphotypes and tooth marks are observed to point out predator-prey interactions. The detailed analysis of taphonomical aspects of Fouvent bone accumulation allows also to discuss and to give criteria about hyena den characterization grids. Le gisement paléontologique de Fouvent (Fouvent-le-Bas, Haute-Saône, France) est une accumulation osseuse karstique connue depuis le début du XIXe siècle. Ce site est à l’origine de nombreuses avancées paléontologiques (reconnaissance de l’hyène fossile par Cuvier, première mention du glouton en France) et taphonomique (caractérisation du repaire de carnivore). Le présent article porte sur l’analyse de 14 977 restes osseux issus à la fois de la collection historique (fouilles de 1842) et des fouilles récentes (1989-1992). Une liste ...