Cueva de Nerja (Last Glacial Maximum)
Basic information
Sample name: Cueva de Nerja (Last Glacial Maximum)

Sample aka: Nerja Cave

Reference: M. Cortés-Sânchez, A. Morales-Muñiz, M. D. Simón-Vallejo, M. M. Bergadá-Zapata, A. Delgado-Huertas, P. López-García, J. A. López-Sâez, M. C. Lozano-Francisco, J. A. Riquelme-Cantal, E. Roselló-Izquierdo, A. Sânchez-Marco, and J. L. Vera-Pelâez. 2008. Palaeoenvironmental and cultural dynamics of the coast of Mâlaga (Andalusia, Spain) during the Upper Pleistocene and early Holocene. Quaternary Science Reviews 27(23-24):2176-2193 [ER 3772]
Geography
Country: Spain

State: Mâlaga



Coordinate: 36° 45' 42" N, 3° 50' 45" W
Coordinate basis: stated in text

Time interval: Late Pleistocene

Section: 3772

Unit number: 3

Unit order: above to below

Max Ma: 0.024

Min Ma: 0.01794

Age basis: radiocarbon (uncalibrated)

Geography comments: "The Cueva de Nerja (Caves of Nerja) are a series of caverns close to the town of Nerja in the Province of Mâlaga, Spain. The site is located on the south side of the Almijara Mountain, in the area commonly known as Ladera del Aguila, and rises some 158 m a.s.l".
"The Last Glacial Maximum stage at Cueva de Nerja ranges from around 24,000 to 17,940 ± 200 BP".

Environment
Lithology: not described

Taphonomic context: carnivore accumulation,cave,human accumulation

Archaeology: bone tools,stone tools

Habitat comments: "The Last Glacial Maximum stage of Cueva de Nerja consists of two substages that are separated by an erosional hiatus. The first (c. 24,000 to 20,000 BP) is related to the last stage of the penultimate cold oscillation of the most recent Würm glaciation. It contains Gravettian industries, which decrease in frequency in the lower layers and occur along with hyena coprolites". During these 4,000 years, the caves were used seasonally by small groups of humans, and were occupied by cave hyena during periods when humans were absent.
"The second substage (18,420 to 17,940; after the hiatus) corresponds with the last interglacial phase of the Würm glaciation and includes include Solutrean industries". By this time, the human population had taken up year-round residence of the caves.

Methods
Life forms: carnivores,rodents,ungulates,marine mammals,other small mammals,birds,fishes,clams,snails,other invertebrates

Sampling methods: quarry,screenwash

Sample size: 18415 specimens

Sampling comments: "Sediments obtained from excavation were sieved with pressured water and floated using sieves of 10, 5, and 1 mm diameter". The counts for each of the stages presented in the reference paper were combined from multiple studies.

Metadata
Sample number: 4050

Contributor: Benjamin Carter

Enterer: Benjamin Carter

Created: 2023-02-14 15:23:33

Modified: 2023-05-30 03:34:14

Abundance distribution
75 species
25 singletons
total count 18415
geometric series index: 132.8
Fisher's α: 9.971
geometric series k: 0.8834
Hurlbert's PIE: 0.6629
Shannon's H: 1.5608
Good's u: 0.9986
Each square represents a species. Square sizes are proportional to counts.
Register
Equus sp.23
Bos primigenius5
Cervus elaphus352142 kg browser-grazer
Capreolus capreolus122 kg browser
Capra pyrenaica3767
Sus scrofa2854 kg herbivore
Monachus monachus8
Lynx pardinus1511 kg
Felis silvestris164.5 kg carnivore
Crocuta sp.2
"Crocuta crocuta": possibly C. spelaea
Oryctolagus cuniculus96222.5 kg browser-grazer
Erinaceus europaeus1
Apodemus sylvaticus1
also 2 Rodentia indet.
Morus bassanus72.9 kg
"Sula bassana"
Calonectris diomedea1535 g
Alectoris rufa1516 g
Clangula hyemalis1932 g
Somateria sp.1
Cygnus sp.1
"cygnus/olor"
Branta bernicla636.0 g
Branta sp.2
"bernicla/rufficolis"
Anser albifrons152.0 g
Alca torda1726 g
Pinguinus impennis5
Columba sp.7
"livia/oenas"
Athene noctua113.2 g
Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax2
Corvus corax1 omnivore
also 4 Corvidae indet. "Pyrrhocorax/Corvus"
Antalis inaequicostata5
Antalis vulgaris1
Mytilus galloprovincialis271
Modiolus modiolus5
Ostrea edulis4
Pecten maximus21
Pecten jacobaeus1
Acanthocardia tuberculata6
"Rudicardium tuberculatum"
Cerastoderma edule88
Venus verrucosa1
Callista chione1
Ruditapes decussatus58
"Tapes decussatus"
Patella caerulea105
Patella ferruginea3
Patella depressa41
"Patella intermedia"
Cymbula safiana14
"Patella nigra"
Patella rustica9
Patella ulyssiponensis27
Patella sp.25
Phorcus richardi71
"Gibbula richardi"
Gibbula sp.1
Phorcus turbinatus5
"Monodonta turbinata"
Littorina sp.1
Melanopsis laevigata2
Melanopsis sp.12
Charonia lampas1
Nucella lapillus5
Stramonita haemastoma1
Tritia pellucida1
"Cyclope pellucida"
Siphonaria pectinata2
Rumina decollata25
Sphincterochila cariosula hispanica3
"Sphincterochila hispanica"
Iberus alonensis2626
Iberus marmoratus4
Otala lactea3
Acipenseridae indet.2
Salmonidae indet.1
Congridae indet.1
Gadidae indet.370
Zeidae indet.4
Moronidae indet.1
Carangidae indet.84
Sparidae indet.518
Labridae indet.79
Mugilidae indet.7
Scombridae indet.19
Triglidae indet.1