Did cave hyenas survived untill historic times?

[Bucardo]

I'm a bit confused. In this moment, I am reading the book Rutas de la Zooarqueología ("Routes of the Zooarchaeology") of Francisco Bernis, a teacher and zoologist from the Complutense University of Madrid. In a chapter of this book, the author write about the archaeo-fauna found in 25 deposits of Portugal and Spain, dated between 4000 an 1000 bC. I'm surprised because Bernis claims that hyena bones were present in one of these deposits, located at the province of Guipúzcoa (Basque Country). (!) One paragraph (excuse the translation mistakes) say this:

Of animals bones, is interesting to note the presence of some that are extinct today in the Peninsula, like the aurochs, the wild horse, the beaver and the hyena. But is interesting to note, as well, how certain species are reflecting 3000 or no more than 4000 years ago an apparent abundance and, especially, a nearly general distribution across the peninsular geography, that contrast with it present reduced or relict distribution. In these cases are found the wolf, the bear, the lynx, the red deer and the roe deer.

Aurochs became extinct in central or north Spain around 1000 bC. Wild horses probably dissapeared at the time of roman invasion. The last spanish beaver died on the western Pyrenees at the beginning of the XVIII century. But... the hyenas? The author don't identified the species. What type of hyena were this "basque hyena"?

Brown hyena (Parahyaena brunnea) were extinct in Iberian Peninsula at the last part of the Pliocene epoch. The giant short-faced hyena, Pachycrocuta brevirostris survived untill middle Pleistocene in Andalusia (according to Björn Kurtén's Pleistocene mammals of Europe) and last recorded striped hyena (Hyaena hyaena) in Iberian Peninsula I think that were found in the first part of portuguese Pleistocene. The unique hyena that inhabits Spain in subsequent times were the giant cave subspecies of spotted hyena (Crocuta crocuta spelaea).

Is this the "basque hyena"? I think that cave hyenas become extinct at the end of the Pleistocene, but I don't know other hyena that colonized Europe after it. Moreover, according to Kurtén, spotted hyena were decreased in Middle East 4000 years ago, and striped hyena "re-colonized" this area from Persia later... I don't think that this is the best setting for a new hyena invasion of Europe... This must were a relict population!

[another specialist]

very interesting Bucardo = if you find anything else out please keep us all informed

[another specialist]

Preparation D. LUKSC

Crocuta crocuta spelaea

www.paleologic.de/archaeozoology%202.html

[Peter]

Here a link of interaction between Hyenas and Neanderthals:
extinctanimals.proboards22.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=prehistorichumans&thread=1131196086.

But does he say that also the Hyena were present in layers of 4000-3000 BC, or does he only say some species that he has found? Maybe the hyena bones were present in an older layer?

[another specialist]

a good question Peter. Lets what to see if there is an answer

[Bucardo]

The author talks only about neolithic or post-neolithic deposits, concentrate on the first Bronze Age. A mistake, perhaps? This is the translation of 170-171 pages:

(in the 4th chapter, Zooarchaeology of mixed faunas)

4.4. Iberian Peninsula

The revision that follows report 25 or more sites and deposits, specifically two of Portugal, twelve of Andalusia, four of East Spain* and six of north of Spain. Most of the check deposits had Bronze [Age], with or without reference to the Argar [culture] (ancient Bronze); around five dated from Chalcolithic with influences, or not, from the Urnfield culture (that marks also the Argar); someone is post-Argar, and three from the Neolithic without more specification, but these contribute to dating hardly. Moreover, there are two with Phoenician influence and one with Iron [Age], but the data contributed for these three deposits are very few and not changes the general statistic synopsis that is full assignable to Bronze.

The most important domestic animals appears distributed in the check deposits in this way: goat (23), sheep (22), cow (21), pig (20), horse (17), dog (18) and ass (5).

The cow is remarkable in 11 deposits and abundant in four. Sheep and goat (generally nominated together) are remarkable on 11 deposits, plus other three of sheep abundance and one more of goat abundance.

Of animal bones, is interesting to note the presence of some that are extinct today in the Peninsula, like the aurochs, the wild horse, the beaver and the hyena. But is interesting to note, as well, how certain species are reflecting 3000 or no more than 4000 years ago an apparent abundance and, especially, a nearly general distribution across the peninsular geography, that contrast with it present reduced or relict distribution. In these cases are found the wolf, the bear, the lynx, the red deer and the roe deer.

The complete list of our sample is the following (the number of deposits where the animal were found is indicated):

Wolf, 4 (in Portugal and Grenada)
Fox, 9
Bear, 5 (in Portugal, Grenada and Álava)
Hyena, 1 (Guipúzcoa)
Spanish Lynx, 7 (2 Portugal, 4 Grenada, 1 Alicante)
Wildcat, 10
Wild Horse, 2 and one more uncertain (Seville, Guipúzcoa)
Aurochs, 7 (2 Portugal, 1 Seville, 2 Grenada, 2 East Spain)
Spanish Ibex: 1 Portugal, 3 Grenada, in lower levels, 2 Guipúzcoa
Chamois, 1 (Guipúzcoa)
Red Deer, 19 (remarkable in 2, notable in 10)
Roe Deer, 10, always scarce
Wild Boar, 17, notable in 4
House Mouse, 4, isolated
Black Rat in the Grenada post-Argar
Rabbit, 15 (6, abundant, 3, remarkable)
Hare, 11 (when are indicated species, is Lepus capensis**)
Beaver, 1 (Purullena, Grenada, in Argar or latest Bronze)
Badger, 8
Otter, 4
Red-legged Partridge, 8

(…)

Bellow, the author make a closed checking of some deposits of Portugal, Andalusia and Valencia. He write later about Urtiaga Cave in Guipúzcoa, but I don’t know if it is the same Guipúzcoa deposit that named before. This new cheking is very short and don’t talk about wild animals:

Urtiaga Cave, Guipúzcoa. Bronze, according to Altuna, 1972, and Marizuelo, the same province, in accordance with the same source in 1967. Is mentioned a 3-months-old lamb, 10 sheep/goat fragments and a dog similar to the Swiss Neolithic dogs. Moreover, human skeleton.

Well, the Neolithic Period is the limit in antiquity. It starts in Southern Spain around 5000 or 6000 years ago and advances to North later. The Calcolithic generalized early, around 4000 years ago. The Argar culture is a Bronze Age culture that occurs in SE Spain between 1900 bC and 1300 bC. Later Bronze Age occurs in Iberia untill 1st millennium bC, when the Iron Age burst into the Peninsula with celtic invaders from France. This hyena is strange in all of these epochs… but probably lived during the Cupper Age!
____________________________________________
*Originally Levante (Murcia + Land of Valencia)
**Lepus capensis originally include many subspecies that today are recognised as separated species. The text probably talks about the Iberian Hare, Lepus granatensis.

[another specialist]

thanks Bucardo for info

[Bucardo]

Ok, specialist.

personales.unican.es/armendaa/urtiaga.htm

Automatic translation of ets.freetranslation.com/ :

Urtiaga



It is located in the skirt of the hill Salbatore, in the neighborhood of Itziar of the municipal term to Owe, to 160 m. s. n. m.



Before the excavation, the cave only was practicable in its initial part, a gallery of some 10 m of length and 2 to 3 m of width, according to the zones. Currently, the cave continues with its higher floor (in this zone has not lowers itself the sediment), being forked al final, until reaching a total length of some 60 m. The mouth of the cave, oriented al I AM, measures today 3 m of width and 3,5 m of height.

It was discovered in 1928 by J. M. of Barandiaran excavated from 1928 to 1936 by T. of Aranzadi and J. M. of Barandiaran. The excavation was interrupted by the civil war. Later, J. M. of Barandiaran carried out three new campaigns of excavations, in 1954, 1955 and 1959. Between 1986 and 1988 J. A. Mujika performed the revived of one of the shelves, in order to consolidating it, taking advantage of the occasion to verify the old stratigraphy.

The deposit understands a series of levels of the Magdaleniense and the Aziliense, to the ones that the level is superimposed B, that contains a collective burial of the recent Prehistory. To this level also diverse traditionally respected human remainders should belong like originating in the lower levels (C and D) and attributed consequently al Aziliense and al Magdaleniense Final. Before the suspicion that these bones, in reality, they could have filtered since the level B, due to certain anomalies detected in other aspects of the deposit, were datings some years ago by means of two different methods, Uranium and C-14 AMS, with the following results:

- Skull B1 (attributed previously al Magdaleniense Final) : Uranium-Thorio: 11.800 ± 3.041 BP. Uranium-Protoactinio: 11.000 ± 4.000 BP. C-14: 3.475 ± 120 BP. C-14: 3.445 ± 110 BP.

- Skull A1 (attributed previously al Aziliense) : C-14: 3.430 ± 100 BP.

By you determined reasons, the datings performed by C-14 they turn out to be more reliable. Consequently, the human remainders that up to now were believed corresponding al Aziliense and Magdaleniense seems that they should be attributed al level B the one that in this way remains dated in the first half of the II millennium to.C., date that does not be inharmonious with the general aspect of the funeral trousseaus recovered in said level, attributable al Old or Full Bronze.

(...)

The remainders of fauna are abundant. There is domestic mammals (horse, cow, goat, sheep, dog) and wild (deer, buck, mountain goat, boar, hyena, small carnivores...), besides numerous marine mollusks, especially in the lower part of the level, already in contact with the Aziliense.

Well, Urtiaga is the site. Which is the hyena?

[extinctionier]

Bucardo, are you also talking about the American Cave Hyena?

[Bucardo]

extinctionier said:

Bucardo, are you also talking about the American Cave Hyena?

No. As far I know, only one species of hyena colonized America, Chasmaporthetes ossifragus. It lived during the Pliocene and become extinct at the start of Ice Age.

During the Pleistocene, the bone-crusher niche in America were occupied by the giant wolf Canis dirus.

[another specialist]

extinctionier said:

Bucardo, are you also talking about the American Cave Hyena?

One of the most extreme bone-crushers that ever evolved was Adcrocuta eximia which lived in Greece, Austria and Spain a bit more than 9 million years ago. With its thick, short legs, it was not a good runner -- but it was a good bone-crusher and may have thus lived mainly by scavenging, even more so than any modern hyena.

Three hyena genera took up running down prey for a living: Chasmaporthetes, Lycyaena and Hyaenictis. They had a long reign as important predators. Chasmaporthetes crossed the Bering land bridge during the Pliocene to enter North America, where it evolved a new species, Chasmaporthetes ossifragus -- North America's only native hyaenid. It did not die out until the first Ice Ages began, in the Pleistocene -- perhaps a victim of the climate changes that also triggered the growth of the great ice sheets.
By the end of the Miocene, hyaenids apparently ran into problems. The true canids (the ancestors of wolves, jackals, foxes and such) had entered Europe and were beginning to diversify, too, and perhaps the hyenas could not compete with them. The entire family almost died out in Europe, except for a few running hyenas like Chasmaporthetes and a giant version of the spotted hyena, called the "cave hyena".

www.wearesites.com/Personal/Hyenas/hy_evolution.php

[noxomanus]

If there still existed hyenas in Iberia at that date, I suspect they'd have been Hyaena hyaena. I base this on the fact that this species is much more tolerant of human disturbance and less in need of large prey and large land surfaces then Crocuta crocuta is, even more so for giant Crocuta species. H. hyeana is still the most widespread and numerous hyena.

That is just a first reaction though.

[another specialist]

Spotted Hyena, Crocuta crocuta & Striped Hyena, Hyaena hyaena migrated into Europe especially Spain.

[another specialist]

The Cave Hyena is an extinct variety of hyena native to Eurasia, ranging from Northern China to Spain and into the British Isles. It is usually considered a subspecies of the Spotted Hyena (Crocuta crocuta spelaea), but is sometimes described as a separate species (Crocuta spelaea) very closely related to the spotted hyena. It is known from a range of fossils and prehistoric cave art. They became extinct across their range near the end of the last ice age (between 20,000 and 10,000 years BP).

Description

Cave paintings and fossils depict the cave hyena as very similar to the modern spotted hyena in appearance, however the cave hyena was significantly larger, standing up to forty inches tall at the shoulder and weighing on average 175–185 pounds; comparable to the largest spotted hyena on record.

Like the spotted hyena, they lived in social groups and probably had a similar social structure and role in the ecosystem, as nocturnal pack hunters and occasional scavengers. Being larger than the spotted hyena, they would have been able to take on comparatively larger prey, and would have been been quite formidable in competition with other predators at kill sites. They appear to have been quite common through most of their reign.

Interaction with hominids

Kills partially processed by Neanderthal and then cave hyena indicate that hyena would occasionally steal Neanderthal kills, and cave hyena and Neanderthal both competed for cave sites, often displacing one another within the fossil record of a given cave. Numerous hominid bones, including Neanderthal, have also been found partially consumed by cave hyena. Modern humans also lived alongside cave hyena, and may have had similar interaction with them.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cave_Hyena

[another specialist]

This is worth a read

The population history of extant and extinct hyenas

mbe.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/reprint/msi244v1.pdf

[surroundx]

I thought this (sub)species was shown to be synonymous with the living Crocuta crocuta ssp.? It was a dissertation if I remember correctly in which morphometric analysis showed significant overlap in various measurements beteen cave and living hyaenas. I'll see if I can find the publication soon.

Anyway, here's a new publication on this taxa:

Diedrich, C. G. (2012). Late Pleistocene Crocuta crocuta spelaea (Goldfuss, 1823) clans as prezewalski horse hunters and woolly rhinoceros scavengers at the open air commuting den and contemporary Neanderthal camp site Westeregeln (central Germany). Journal of Archaeological Science 39: 1749e1767.

[surroundx]

Thesis entitled 'Comparison of Crocuta crocuta crocuta and Crocuta crocuta spelaea through computer tomography'

www.oeaw.ac.at/kfq/hyaenas/thesis.pdf

[surroundx]

Diedrich, Cajus G. (2016). Late Pleistocene hyena skeleton remains of a communal/prey depot cave den in the Bohemian Mountains (Czech Republic) – Its osteology, taphonomy and palaeoecology. Acta Zoologica. DOI: 10.1111/azo.12152 [Abstract]

[surroundx]

Gatta, Maurizio et al. (In Press, 2016). Pollen from Late Pleistocene hyena (Crocuta crocuta spelaea) coprolites: An interdisciplinary approach from two Italian sites. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology. doi:10.1016/j.revpalbo.2016.07.005 [Abstract]

[surroundx]

twilightbeasts.wordpress.com/2014/05/02/clan-of-the-cave-hyena/