Publication Date:
2012-07-21
Description:
Neanderthals disappeared sometime between 30,000 and 24,000 years ago. Until recently, Neanderthals were understood to have been predominantly meat-eaters; however, a growing body of evidence suggests their diet also included plants. We present the results of a study, in which sequential thermal desorption-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (TD-GC-MS) and pyrolysis-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (Py-GC-MS) were combined with morphological analysis of plant microfossils, to identify material entrapped in dental calculus from five Neanderthal individuals from the north Spanish site of El Sidrón. Our results provide the first molecular evidence for inhalation of wood-fire smoke and bitumen or oil shale and ingestion of a range of cooked plant foods. We also offer the first evidence for the use of medicinal plants by a Neanderthal individual. The varied use of plants that we have identified suggests that the Neanderthal occupants of El Sidrón had a sophisticated knowledge of their natural surroundings which included the ability to select and use certain plants. Content Type Journal Article Category Original Paper Pages 1-10 DOI 10.1007/s00114-012-0942-0 Authors Karen Hardy, ICREA at Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain Stephen Buckley, BioArCh, University of York, York, UK Matthew J. Collins, BioArCh, University of York, York, UK Almudena Estalrrich, Paleoanthropology Group, Department of Paleobiology, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales, CSIC, Madrid, Spain Don Brothwell, BioArCh, University of York, York, UK Les Copeland, Faculty of Agriculture and Environment, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia Antonio García-Tabernero, Paleoanthropology Group, Department of Paleobiology, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales, CSIC, Madrid, Spain Samuel García-Vargas, Paleoanthropology Group, Department of Paleobiology, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales, CSIC, Madrid, Spain Marco de la Rasilla, Área de Prehistoria, Departamento de Historia, Universidad de Oviedo, Oviedo, Spain Carles Lalueza-Fox, Institute of Evolutionary Biology, CSIC-Universitat Pompeu Fabra, 08003 Barcelona, Spain Rosa Huguet, Institut Català de Paleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social (Unidad Asociada—CSIC) Universitat Rovira i Virgili, Tarragona, Spain Markus Bastir, Paleoanthropology Group, Department of Paleobiology, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales, CSIC, Madrid, Spain David Santamaría, Área de Prehistoria, Departamento de Historia, Universidad de Oviedo, Oviedo, Spain Marco Madella, ICREA at IMF-CSIC, Barcelona, Spain Julie Wilson, YCCSA, University of York, York, UK Ángel Fernández Cortés, Departamento de Geología, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales CSIC, C/José Gutierrez Abascal, 2, 28006 Madrid, Spain Antonio Rosas, Paleoanthropology Group, Department of Paleobiology, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales, CSIC, Madrid, Spain Journal Naturwissenschaften Online ISSN 1432-1904 Print ISSN 0028-1042
Print ISSN:
0028-1042
Electronic ISSN:
1432-1904
Topics:
Biology
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Chemistry and Pharmacology
,
Natural Sciences in General
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