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Venta Micena is an area containing several palaeontological sites marking the beginning of the Calabrian stage (Early Pleistocene). The richness of the fossil accumulation including species of Asian, African and European origin, makes Venta Micena a key site for the the palaeoecological and palaeoenvironmental study of southern Europe during the Early Pleistocene. Thus, research has been focused on Venta Micena 3, which was originally interpreted as a single palaeosurface associated with a marshy context, in which most of the fauna was accumulated by Pachycrocuta brevirostris. Recent excavations have unearthed a new site, Venta Micena 4, located in the same stratigraphic unit (Unit C) and in close proximity to Venta Micena 3. Here we show the first analyses regarding the taphonomic and spatial nature of this new site, defining two stratigraphic boundaries corresponding to two different depositional events. Furthermore, the taphonomic analyses of fossil remains seem to indicate a different accumulative agent than Pachycrocuta, thus adding more complexity to the palaeobiological interpretation of the Venta Micena area. These results contribute to the discussion of traditional interpretations made from Venta Micena 3.

In this paper, the early Pleistocene small vertebrate sequence of Quibas-Sima (Quibas karstic complex, Murcia, SE Spain) is presented. The available magnetostratigraphic information together with the small vertebrate association, allow to reliably constrain the age of the different units. The basal unit of the section has recorded a reversed polarity assigned to the pre-Jaramillo Matuyama (C1r.2r, i.e., between 1.2 and 1.07 Ma). The intermediate units have recorded a normal polarity correlated directly with the Jaramillo subchron (C1r.1n, between 1.07 and 0.99 Ma), while the upper units record the post-Jaramillo reverse polarity (C1r.1r, i.e., between 0.99 and 0.78). Jaramillo subchron is especially significant regarding the earliest hominin dispersal in Western Europe. However, vertebrate faunas unambiguously correlatable with Jaramillo subchron are extremely rare in Europe. Thereby, the study of the Quibas-Sima sequence allows to characterize the vertebrate association synchronous to this paleomagnetic episode in southern Iberian Peninsula, and contributes to increase knowledge of the biotic and climatic events that took place in southern Europe at the beginning of the Early-Middle Pleistocene transition, prior to the Matuyama-Brunhes boundary. A continuous small vertebrate succession has been reported, including representatives of the families Bufonidae, Pelodytidae, Testudinidae, Gekkonidae, Blanidae, Lacertidae, Colubridae, Viperidae, Soricidae, Erinaceidae, Rhinolophidae, Vespertilionidae, Muridae, Gliridae, Sciuridae, Leporidae and Ochotonidae The ecological affinities of the faunal association suggest a progressive reduction in forest cover in the onset of the Jaramillo subchron.

Kaldar Cave is a key archaeological site that provides evidence of the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic transition in Iran. Excavations at the site in 2014-2015 led to the discovery of cultural remains generally associated with anatomically modern humans (AMHs) and evidence of a probable Neanderthal-made industry in the basal layers. Attempts have been made to establish a chronology for the site. These include four thermoluminescence (TL) dates for Layer 4, ranging from 23,100 ± 3300 to 29,400 ± 2300 BP, and three AMS radiocarbon dates from charcoal samples belonging to the lower part of the same layer, yielding ages of 38,650-36,750 cal BP, 44,200-42,350 cal BP, and 54,400-46,050 cal BP (all at the 95.4% confidence level). Kaldar Cave is the first well-stratified Late Palaeolithic locality to be excavated in the Zagros which is one of the earliest sites with cultural materials attributed to early AMHs in western Asia. It also offers an opportunity to study the technological differences between the Mousterian and the first Upper Palaeolithic lithic technologies as well as the human behaviour in the region. In this study, we present a detailed description of the newly excavated stratigraphy, quantified results from the lithic assemblages, preliminary faunal remains analyses, geochronologic data, taphonomic aspects, and an interpretation of the regional paleoenvironment.