The large mammal fauna of the Pleistocene site Schöningen 13II. The levels Schö 13II-1, 13II-2 and 13II-3.

In the German town of Schöningen (Niedersachsen, Germany) several Middle Pleistocene sites have been found and excavated since 1992. These sites are named Schöningen 12B, Schöningen 13I and Schöningen 13II. The latter has been the focus of research since wooden spears of Palaeolithic man were found there among the remains of butchered horses. Schöningen 13II consists of five different levels named Schöningen 13II-1 to 13II-5, which are dated to the newly defined Reinsdorf Interglacial. For this thesis the large mammal remains found in the oldest levels Schöningen 13II-1, 13II-2 and 13II-3 have been determined and analysed. The bones have been assigned to species of the suborder Caniformia, the wolf Canis lupus, species of the family Elephantidae, the Mosbach horse Equus mosbachensis, the forest rhino Stephanorhinus kirchbergensis, the steppe rhino Stephanorhinus hemitoechus, the wild boar Sus scrofa, the red deer Cervus elaphus, the giant deer Megaloceros giganteus, the roe deer...Show moreIn the German town of Schöningen (Niedersachsen, Germany) several Middle Pleistocene sites have been found and excavated since 1992. These sites are named Schöningen 12B, Schöningen 13I and Schöningen 13II. The latter has been the focus of research since wooden spears of Palaeolithic man were found there among the remains of butchered horses. Schöningen 13II consists of five different levels named Schöningen 13II-1 to 13II-5, which are dated to the newly defined Reinsdorf Interglacial. For this thesis the large mammal remains found in the oldest levels Schöningen 13II-1, 13II-2 and 13II-3 have been determined and analysed. The bones have been assigned to species of the suborder Caniformia, the wolf Canis lupus, species of the family Elephantidae, the Mosbach horse Equus mosbachensis, the forest rhino Stephanorhinus kirchbergensis, the steppe rhino Stephanorhinus hemitoechus, the wild boar Sus scrofa, the red deer Cervus elaphus, the giant deer Megaloceros giganteus, the roe deer Capreolus capreolus and species of the genus Bos/Bison, the bones of which belong to either the aurochs Bos primigenius or the steppe bison Bison priscus. The large mammal species of Schö 13II-1, 13II-2 and 13II-3 determined by previous researchers, have been added to the analyses for completeness. In addition to the aforementioned species, these researchers have determined species of the family Mustelidae, including the ermine Mustela erminea, a Mustela species and a Martes species, and species of the family Bovidae, including Bos primigenius and Bison priscus. The previously analysed faunal assemblage from level Schöningen 13II-4 has been added to the palaeoecological and biostratigraphic analyses as well. The large mammals have been used to reconstruct the palaeoecology during the Reinsdorf Interglacial. The animals represent a warm temperate climate and the presence of a forest steppe environment in Schöningen 13II-1, the climatic optimum, with increasingly cooler conditions up to level Schöningen 13II-4, in which the wooden spears were encountered. These results are in accordance with the palaeobotanical data of the Schöningen 13II levels. Considering the taphonomic state of the bones it appears that these are very well preserved, whilst all skeletal elements are more or less equally represented. Unfortunately the presence of human cutmarks has been difficult to establish, only two indeterminate bone fragments certainly display cutmarks. The fauna therefore consisted of natural populations which might occasionally have been hunted and butchered by hominids. Gnawing traces of a rodent are present on a radius of Bos/Bison. The mammalian compositions of the Schöningen 13II levels have been compared with those from other Middle Pleistocene sites in Germany and Great Britain. The Schöningen 13II compositions bear most resemblance to the faunal assemblages from Bilzingsleben II and Swanscombe, attributed to MIS 11. It follows that according to the large mammal fauna the Reinsdorf Interglacial should be attributed to MIS 11 as well, and is thus of Holsteinian age.Show less

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The large mammal fauna of the Pleistocene site Schöningen 13II. The levels Schö 13II-1, 13II-2 and 13II-3.