NEARCOAST · Neanderthal coastal adaptations in southern Europe and eastern Asia

Neanderthal coastal adaptations in southern Europe and eastern Asia

European southern coasts have long been at the centre of archaeological debates contrasting the social and cognitive abilities of Neanderthals and Anatomically Modern Humans (AMH). Early evidence of shellfish exploitation by Neanderthals in this region challenged the traditional view that coastal adaptation was a distinctive feature of AMH cognition and behaviour. While it is now clear that Neanderthals did exploit marine resources to obtain protein-rich foods, the nature of their seasonal foraging strategies remains an open question. The NEARCOAST project, hosted by the Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB) and supervised by Prof. André Colonese, seeks to deepen our understanding of Neanderthal behaviour and foraging ecology, as well as the role of coastal environments in shaping their adaptive capacity and resilience during the Middle Palaeolithic. To achieve this, the project applies a range of biomolecular techniques to faunal remains recovered from key Neanderthal coastal sites in southwestern Europe. This region was selected for its exceptional archaeological record and because it is the only area in the world where such a comprehensive investigation is currently possible. Research on Neanderthal behavioural ecology has largely focused on faunal assemblages from inland contexts, particularly ungulates and small game such as reptiles and lagomorphs. By comparison, the ways in which Neanderthal groups adapted to and exploited coastal environments remain relatively underexplored. The NEARCOAST project aims to address this imbalance and fill critical gaps in our knowledge of Neanderthal subsistence systems. The project pursues three main objectives: 1) To identify patterns of intertidal resource use among coastal Neanderthal populations in southern Europe and western Asia. 2) To reconstruct Neanderthal foraging strategies and seasonal resource scheduling in coastal settings. 3) To enhance our understanding of Neanderthal evolutionary adaptation across southern Eurasia. To achieve these goals, NEARCOAST will apply a combination of analytical techniques, including taxonomic identification, stable isotope and trace element analysis of shell remains, as well as taxonomic analysis and collagen type I peptide mass fingerprinting of vertebrate bone remains. These analyses will be carried out on material from key Middle Palaeolithic sites spanning the western Iberian Peninsula to the eastern Mediterranean, including Figueira Brava, Complejo del Humo, and Los Aviones in southern Iberia, and Üçağızlı II in the Levant.

Текст от CORDIS, на английски · Данни: CORDIS, © Европейски съюз