Paleolithic Fish from Southern Poland: A Paleozoogeographical Approach

• Main Authors: Lõugas, Lembi, Wojtal, Piotr, Wilczyński, Jarosław, Stefaniak, Krzysztof
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Universidad Autónoma de Madrid 2013
• Subjects: Paleolithic; Freshwater fish; Paleozoogeography; Poland; Oblazowa cave; Paleolítico; Peces de agua dulce; Paleozoogeografía; Polonia; Cueva de Oblazowa; Cueva; Ice cap
• Online Access: https://revistas.uam.es/archaeofauna/article/view/6377

The area covered by glaciers during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) includes a large territory in northern Europe. In this region, Paleolithic finds are rare and fish bones fairly unique. Analysis of Paleolithic fish bones outside of the LGM range was carried out with the intention of reconstructing the paleozoogeographical distribution of this animal group before the retreat of the ice cap from the Baltic Basin. This research focuses on an archaeological fish bone assemblage from Ob?azowa Cave, southern Poland. Other samples examined are from Krucza Ska?a Rock Shelter (Kroczyckie Rocks), Bi?nik Cave (Wod?ca Valley), Borsuka Cave (Szklarka Valley), and Nad Tunelem Cave (Pr?dnik Valley). The latter sites are considered naturally accumulated deposits, but, at Ob?azowa and Krucza Ska?a, anthropogenic factors also played an important role. The fish bones from the Paleolithic cave deposits of Ob?azowa included at least six fish genera: Thymallus, Coregonus, Salmo, Salvelinus, Esox, and Cottus. The presence of Coregonus was especially significant since this fish does not occur in the study area today but may have been present in some of the mountain lakes of southern Poland before the LGM. As new phylogeographic studies based on DNA analyses of different fish species are now available, such information may help in understanding the paleozoogeographical distribution of these fish during the Pleistocene. El área cubierta por los glaciares durante el último máximo glaciar (LGM) incluía un extenso territorio de Europa septentrional. En estas regiones los hallazgos paleolíticos son infrecuentes y los de huesos de peces excepcionales. Análisis de los restos de peces paleolíticos fuera del perímetro de los glaciares fueron llevados a cabo con la intención de inferir la distribución paleozoogeográfica de este grupo antes de la retirada del casquete polar de la cuenca del Báltico. Este trabajo se centra en la muestra arqueoictiológica recuperada en la cueva de Ob?azowa, en la Polonia meridional. Otros yacimientos analizados ...