Paleoanthropologists have analyzed zinc, strontium, carbon, and oxygen isotope and trace element ratios in a fossilized Neanderthal tooth as well as animal teeth unearthed in Cueva de los Moros 1, Gabasa, Spain.
Jaouen et al. employ zinc isotope analysis of dental enamel of a Neanderthal and associated fauna from the cave site of Cueva de los Moros 1, Spain, which can be applied to contexts over 50,000 years old. Image credit: Abel Grau, CSIC Communication.
The cave site of Cueva de los Moros 1 was excavated in the 1980s and is very well documented.
All fossilized remains come from a single stratigraphic layer directly above a layer dated to 143,000 years ago.
Coexisting plant-eating animals from three different types of environmental contexts are represented in the layer: mountains (Iberian ibex and chamois), forest (hoofed ruminant mammals including red deer), and open environments (horses and European wild asses).
Numerous remains of carnivores were recovered along with Neanderthal remains, allowing for comparison of the different meat-eating species.
“To determine an individual’s position in the food chain, scientists have until now generally had to extract proteins and analyse the nitrogen isotopes present in the bone collagen,” said Dr. Klervia Jaouen, a researcher at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology and the Observatoire Midi Pyrénées, and colleagues.
“However, this method can often only be used in temperate environments, and only rarely on samples over 50,000 years old.”
“When these conditions are not met, nitrogen isotope analysis is very complex, or even impossible.”
“This was the case for the Neanderthal molar from the Cueva de los Moros 1 site.”
In their study, the researchers performed isotope analysis of dental enamel of a Neanderthal and associated fauna from Cueva de los Moros 1.
“This is the first time this method has been used to attempt to identify a Neanderthal’s diet,” they said.
“The results showed that the Neanderthal individual from Cueva de los Moros 1 was probably a carnivore who did not consume the blood of their prey.”
“Broken bones found at the site, together with isotopic data, indicate that this individual also ate the bone marrow of their prey, without consuming the bones, while other chemical tracers show that they were weaned before the age of two.”
“Analyses also show that this Neanderthal probably died in the same place they had lived in as a child.”
“Compared to previous techniques, this new zinc isotope analysis method makes it easier to distinguish between omnivores and carnivores,” they added.
“To confirm the conclusions, we hope to repeat the experiment on individuals from other sites, especially from the Payre site in south-east France, where new research is under way.”
The study was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
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Klervia Jaouen et al. 2022. A Neandertal dietary conundrum: Insights provided by tooth enamel Zn isotopes from Gabasa, Spain. PNAS 119 (43): e2109315119; doi: 10.1073/pnas.2109315119
