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This comprehensive study examines fossil remains from Niedźwiedzia Cave in the Eastern Sudetes, offering detailed insights into the palaeobiology and adversities encountered by the Pleistocene cave bear Ursus spelaeus ingressus. Emphasising habitual cave use for hibernation and a primarily herbivorous diet, the findings attribute mortality to resource scarcity during hibernation and habitat fragmentation amid climate shifts. Taphonomic analysis indicates that the cave was extensively used by successive generations of bears, virtually unexposed to the impact of predators. The study also reveals that alkaline conditions developed in the cave during the post-depositional taphonomic processes. Mortality patterns, notably among juveniles, imply dwindling resources, indicative of environmental instability. Skeletal examination reveals a high incidence of forelimb fractures, indicating risks during activities like digging or confrontations. Palaeopathological evidence unveils vulnerabilities to tuberculosis, abscesses, rickets, and injuries, elucidating mobility challenges. The cave's silts exhibit a high zinc concentration, potentially derived from successive bear generations consuming zinc-rich plants. This study illuminates the lives of late cave bears, elucidating unique environmental hurdles faced near their species' end. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Peopling of Central Europe by Middle Pleistocene hominids is highly debatable, mainly due to the relatively harsh climatic and environmental conditions that require cultural and anatomical adjustments. At least several archaeological sites certify human occupation in the region dated back to MIS 13-11, but they represent open-air settlements. Based on the new fieldwork conducted in Tunel Wielki Cave, we can date the human occupation traces in the cave to MIS 14-12. Bipolar-on-anvil knapping technique prevails in the lithic assemblage, made exclusively in flint. The obtained results have given ground for studying the frontiers of human oikumene and the required cultural adaptive abilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent excavations in Ciemna Cave in the Prądnik valley near Ojców, southern Poland have brought to light new stratigraphic and techno-typological evidence concerning Late Middle Palaeolithic groups and their cultural affinities. In 2007, excavations began in the hitherto-unexplored main chamber of Ciemna Cave, with the goal of clarifying the results of previous work in other parts of the cave. During excavation the rocky floor of the cave was reached. About 1000 stone artifacts have been collected to date. Three cultural traditions have been documented: Mousterian, Taubachian, and Micoquian. Within the Micoquian tradition, three cultural levels were observed, which enriches the previous understanding of occupational phases at the site. These findings permit revision of the traditional terms “Prądnik industry” and “Prądnik technique.” [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Panthera spelaea was recorded in Poland from 18 open-air and 42 cave sites dated in the range 750–28 ka. Most of these records are located in southern Poland (Silesia) and neighbouring areas. Among them, the find of Panthera spelaea in Kozi Grzbiet mentioned here for the first time is one of the oldest European records of the species. Most of the obtained AMS dates are concentrated on the second half of MIS 3 and showed that the Pleistocene lion disappeared more or less synchronously across Poland. The findings of its remains from open-air sites are mostly accidental discoveries during field works, while those in caves are mostly connected with archaeological research and the exploitation of cave sediments for producing fertilizers. Aside of a few juvenile bones and milk teeth, the remains of adult individuals, mostly males, predominate in the studied sample. Their behavior to hunting cave bear during the times, when the other, more typical food sources were scarce, tendention to hunt very big preys and went into the conflicts with other carnivores than females do, resulted in higher injuries and mortalities. Within the species, three chronosubspecies were recognized, with P. s. fossilis recorded from 7 sites, dated between 750 and 240 ka and P. s. intermedia only partially recognized in Wierzchowska Górna Cave. The most numerous are the remains of P. s. spelaea which were found in 48 localities dated between 150 and 28 ka. With the exception of four caves, the Polish finds of P. spelaea are generally less abundant at sites where they occur. Older P. s. fossilis , dated on MIS 19–12, was a large form with robust stature and broad cheek teeth. Younger P. s. fossilis dated on MIS 11–9 was represented by a large and massive specimens, but with more advanced morphological dental features. Polish individuals of P. s. spelaea were slightly smaller and less massive than P. s. fossilis , with narrower cheek teeth. Since MIS 3, a dwarf and gracile specimens appeared, which is correlated with the genetic turnover ca. 48–45 ka. The Pleistocene lion was one of the earliest disappeared large carnivores predated only by a cave hyena. There are no direct evidences of P. spelaea encounters with humans. The extinction of P. spelaea is broadly correlated with the general collapse of the "mammoth steppe" ecosystem and was resulted of multiple reasons like climatic changes, re-building of herbivore guilds, competition and human pressure. Wolf and, to a lesser extent, bears were the main competitors for the Pleistocene lion in Poland. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this article is to yield new insights into the topic of provisioning places of late Neanderthals using records from the central European Micoquian workshop Pietraszyn 49a, located in southwestern Poland. The site has been radiometrically dated back, using optically stimulated luminescence, to the final phase of Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 4 or the beginning of MIS 3. The technological study, supported by numerous refits, shows that the main goals of manufacturing were shaped tools typologically corresponding to knives, handaxes, and bifacial scrapers. Considering the large variety of lithic raw materials and technical features, it can also be concluded that this assemblage resulted from the activity of at least several individuals. A microscopic investigation of use-wear traces indicates that this place was integrated within other elements of foraging zones, such as killing or butchering sites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ciemna Cave is a key Micoquian site located in Ojców National Park, in the southern part of the Kraków-Częstochowa Upland. The site is known for a distinct group of asymmetrical knives, prądniks, as well as the associated cultural assemblage, the “Prądnik industry” or “Micoquo-Prondnikiens”—both named after the Prądnik stream flowing through the valley. Excavation of Ciemna Cave carried out in the early twentieth century provided a series of stratified archaeological materials. The published sections indicated explicitly diverse sequences and contexts in various parts of the site. In Ogrójec (sector CO), a collapsed part of the cave, two cultural layers were recognized within loess deposit: an upper layer with Prądnik industry implements and a lower layer with Prądnik industry artifacts and mixture of older cultural units, including those with handaxes. A different situation was encountered at the entrance to the cave (sector C), where a much longer stratigraphic section with a few artifactually poor cultural levels was discovered. Current excavations began in 2007 targeted a new area of the cave chamber, with a primary goal of correlating geologic and cultural sequences from the previous excavations. At this stage a complete section has been exposed, which comprises 19 major geological layers and 9 archeological levels. The area has provided new lithics finds and chronological data that have allowed us to make preliminary cultural linkages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]