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The emporion of Pech Maho was destroyed after a warlike event at the end of the third century BC. Shortly after that, around 200 BC, the site was resettled. This reuse is characterised above all by massive deposits of equid carcasses in various locations around the city. The conditions of these deposits are investigated in this paper. We focus on examining several biological parameters (weight, age and sex) of the equid population, as well as their feeding habits, using three different proxies: stable isotope, dental meso- and microwear. This interdisciplinarity gives us access to the overall equid diet, as well as to the diet during the last phases of their lives. This population is largely dominated by small size young adult males. Isotopic as well as morphometric analyses indicate that they were bred in various locations before being brought to Pech Maho. Dental wear analyses show that they experienced the same feeding throughout their lives and just before their death. The animals were all slaughtered within a short period of time. This study illustrates the advantages of combining proxies in order to enhance our understanding of the life and death conditions of Iron Age equids. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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This paper presents the results of a pilot study using dental microwear analysis on 23 sheep and goat teeth dated to the 6th century BC from the Iron Age site of El Turó Font de la Canya (Barcelona, Spain). This study aimed to reconstruct livestock management practices and landscape use. The dental microwear pattern indicates that sheep and goats could have been grazing in the same area where vegetation was composed of shrubs, bushes and non-graminaceous plants on an eroded landscape, although additional supplies of fodder cannot be excluded. This scenario is compatible with the archaeological and palaeoenvironmental data which suggest a possibly increased territoriality, land degradation and an increase of woodland clearance during Iron Age in the North-east of the Iberian Peninsula. Furthermore, we applied two recent microwear approaches which provide more information about mortality events and the possibility of distinguishing between an intensive and extensive management. This paper demonstrates how this method can be used to better understand animal husbandry practices and landscape use in Late Prehistory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Archeologické Rozhledy is the property of Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Institute of Archaeology and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Ontogenetic niche shifts, the phenomenon whereby animals change their resource use with growth, were probably widespread in dinosaurs, but most studies of duck-billed dinosaur ontogeny have so far focused mainly on the development of the cranial ornamentation. Here, we quantify allometry of 13 ecomorphological variables of the skull and examine tooth microwear in a sample of North American hadrosaurids to better understand their ecological functioning with growth. Our results indicate that, consistent with the Jarman-Bell principle relating body size to fibre intake and feeding selectivity, juvenile hadrosaurids were relatively more selective than their adult counterparts and subsisted on softer, low-growing browse cropped using lateral rotations of the neck. Chewing movements of the jaw probably did not differ greatly between growth stages. Our findings invite further investigation relating to cranial ontogenetic allometry in hadrosauromorphs more broadly, and to the possible role of ontogenetic niche shifts in the size structuring of Late Cretaceous herbivore communities. • Morphometric changes within the skull indicates dietary changes during growth. • Juveniles selectively fed on softer, lower-growing vegetation than adults. • Juvenile skulls may have been more kinetic than those of adults. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Handedness is a product of brain specialization, which in turn seems to be responsible for the higher cognitive capabilities of humans, such as language and technology. Handedness in living humans is well established and shows the highest degree of manual specialization. Studies on hand laterality in nonhuman primates, particularly in chimpanzees, remain a matter of controversy as results tend to vary depending on factors such as the tasks performed and the environment in which the individuals live. Studies in several disciplines have attempted to determine where in the course of human evolution handedness established itself, with evidence collected from sources such as paleoneurological analyses, stone tool flaking, zooarchaeological studies and dental wear analyses, the last one of which have proven the most reliable source of information. Here we report an experimental and paleoanthropological study on hand laterality of a sample of 28 hominids from Sima de los Huesos (Atapuerca, Spain), dated at about 500,000 years ago, and compare our results with dental microwear analysis in other fossil samples such as that from Krapina (Croatia), as well as modern traditional societies. Our results indicate that European Middle Pleistocene Homo heidelbergensis was already as right-handed as modern populations. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Observing the microwear patterns of the dental crowns enamel surface can provide information on the ingredients and structure of the food consumed, but also on eating habits and lifestyle. Major role in reconstructing the diet and lifestyle of past populations is played by the analysis of alkaline earth metals, such as strontium, barium, zinc and calcium. Ba and Sr are indicators of the consumption of vegetables, plants (cereals and legumes) and marine organisms. This study aims to assess dietary diversity and identify its components based on microscopic techniques and chemical analyses of material from early modern archaeological sites in Wrocław, Poland. The material consisted of 36 permanent molars and the intrasternal parts of 122 first ribs, collected from 6 Wroclaw early modern cemeteries. Tooth microwear was evaluated on Scanning electron microscopy images, with Microwear 4.02 software. Bone chemical composition (Ca, P, Ba, Sr content) was evaluated with mass spectrometry. Most lines were present on the teeth from St. Mary Magdalene Cemetery, with the lowest average number of lines observed on the teeth from St. Barbara Cemetery. The Ca/P ratios calculated for different sites formed two clusters that allows to distinguish two groups of archaeological sites with different bone preservation status. Number of differences in Ba/Sr, Sr/Ca, Ba/Ca ratios was found between disctinct archaeological sites. A number of correlations were found between the concentration of the chemical elements, but no statistically significant correlation was found between the microwear characteristics and the proportion of the elements studied. Some strong correlations were found between microwear features and the Ca/P ratio. the different values of Sr/Ca, Ba/Ca and Ba/Sr ratios indicate different diets in the different communities. The data obtained indicate a mixed diet, with a relatively high proportion of animal products throughout Wrocław. Conclusions should be treated with caution due to secondary diagenesis. The lack of interdependence between microwear and chemical composition characteristics suggests that the two methods should be considered complementary and not overlapping, as they provide different insights into the diets of past populations. The comparison of microwear between different sites should always take into account secondary diagenesis and the burial environment, as these influence the characteristics of microwear. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]