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Unit TE9 of the Sima del Elefante (Sierra de Atapuerca, Burgos, Spain), where the remains of Homo sp. have been discovered (1.2–1.3 Ma), is also a level rich in small mammals. The taphonomic study of these small vertebrates sheds light on the landscape that provided the setting for the activities of these early hominids and allows us to describe what the cave was like during the formation of the level. Small mammal predators identified in the study indicate that during this period the Sierra de Atapuerca was part of a large biome consisting of semi-open riparian forests with meadows nearby. Postdepositional alterations reveal that the production of fossils took place outside the cave, being transported inside by water currents. During the formation of TE9, the cave presented conditions of high humidity, which made it difficult for hominids to establish occupations inside, although these conditions became somewhat less severe in TE9c, the sublevel where human remains are found. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The first arrivals of hominin populations into Eurasia during the Early Pleistocene are currently considered to have occurred as short and poorly dated biological dispersions. Questions as to the tempo and mode of these early prehistoric settlements have given rise to debates concerning the taxonomic significance of the lithic assemblages, as trace fossils, and the geographical distribution of the technological traditions found in the Lower Palaeolithic record. Here, we report on the Barranc de la Boella site which has yielded a lithic assemblage dating to ∼1 million years ago that includes large cutting tools (LCT). We argue that distinct technological traditions coexisted in the Iberian archaeological repertoires of the late Early Pleistocene age in a similar way to the earliest sub-Saharan African artefact assemblages. These differences between stone tool assemblages may be attributed to the different chronologies of hominin dispersal events. The archaeological record of Barranc de la Boella completes the geographical distribution of LCT assemblages across southern Eurasia during the EMPT (Early-Middle Pleistocene Transition, circa 942 to 641 kyr). Up to now, chronology of the earliest European LCT assemblages is based on the abundant Palaeolithic record found in terrace river sequences which have been dated to the end of the EMPT and later. However, the findings at Barranc de la Boella suggest that early LCT lithic assemblages appeared in the SW of Europe during earlier hominin dispersal episodes before the definitive colonization of temperate Eurasia took place. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The sequence from Abric Romaní has provided several palaeoecological studies. This paper presents a synthesis of the results yielded by palynology, including the data from the entire non-excavated deposits, and the data obtained through the study of large mammals, micromammals, herpetofauna, and anthracology from the excavated layers. The palaeobotanical studies show that the sequence is mainly related to pine forests, and near or within these dominant forests there were smaller plant formations and/or secondary species with a Mediterranean and/or Atlantic character. Nevertheless, continuous forest did not dominate the entire region. The fauna occupying the territory indicate open spaces in which seasonal grasslands proliferated, dry assemblages in sunny areas and humid ones in mountain shadows. The non-excavated archaeological layers correspond to MIS 4, initially characterized by temperate and humid conditions, and thereafter cool and humid until HS 6 and MIS 3. Afterwards, at the beginning of the MIS 3, the Dansgaard–Oeschger cycles, ∼1500 yr rapid and abrupt climatic changes, occurred during the deposition of the archaeological levels O, N, M, L, K and J. Later, these events were interrupted by a cold and dry phase, between ca 49 and 47 ka BP, which affected levels Ja, I and H, culminating with HS 5. Finally, this cold episode was followed by the Hengelo interstadial or DO 12, characterized by a temperate and humid climate identified in levels E and D. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]