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The hypothesized main drivers of megafauna extinctions in the late Quaternary have wavered between over-exploitation by humans and environmental change, with recent investigations demonstrating more nuanced synergies between these drivers depending on taxon, spatial scale, and region. However, most studies still rely on comparing archaeologically based chronologies of timing of initial human arrival into naïve ecosystems and palaeontologically inferred dates of megafauna extinctions. Conclusions arising from comparing chronologies also depend on the reliability of dated evidence, dating uncertainties, and correcting for the low probability of preservation (Signor–Lipps effect). While some models have been developed to test the susceptibility of megafauna to theoretical offtake rates, none has explicitly linked human energetic needs, prey choice, and hunting efficiency to examine the plausibility of human-driven extinctions. Using the island of Cyprus in the terminal Pleistocene as an ideal test case because of its late human settlement (~14.2–13.2 ka), small area (~11 000 km2), and low megafauna diversity (2 species), we developed stochastic models of megafauna population dynamics, with offtake dictated by human energetic requirements, prey choice, and hunting-efficiency functions to test whether the human population at the end of the Pleistocene could have caused the extinction of dwarf hippopotamus (Phanourios minor) and dwarf elephants (Palaeoloxodon cypriotes). Our models reveal not only that the estimated human population sizes (n = 3000–7000) in Late Pleistocene Cyprus could have easily driven both species to extinction within < 1000 years, the model predictions match the observed, Signor–Lipps-corrected chronological sequence of megafauna extinctions inferred from the palaeontological record (P. minor at ~12–11.1 ka, followed by P. cypriotes at ~10.3–9.1 ka). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The antiquity of human dispersal into Mediterranean islands and ensuing coastal adaptation have remained largely unexplored due to the prevailing assumption that the sea was a barrier to movement and that islands were hostile environments to early hunter-gatherers [J. F. Cherry, T. P. Leppard, J. Isl. Coast. Archaeol. 13, 191-205 (2018), 10.1080/15564894.2016.1276489]. Using the latest archaeological data, hindcasted climate projections, and age-structured demographic models, we demonstrate evidence for early arrival (14,257 to 13,182 calendar years ago) to Cyprus and predicted that large groups of people (~1,000 to 1,375) arrived in 2 to 3 main events occurring within <100 y to ensure low extinction risk. These results indicate that the postglacial settlement of Cyprus involved only a few large-scale, organized events requiring advanced watercraft technology. Our spatially debiased and Signor-Lipps-corrected estimates indicate rapid settlement of the island within <200 y, and expansion to a median of 4,000 to 5,000 people (0.36 to 0.46 km-2) in <11 human generations (<300 y). Our results do not support the hypothesis of inaccessible and inhospitable islands in the Mediterranean for pre-agropastoralists, agreeing with analogous conclusions for other parts of the world [M. I. Bird et al., Sci. Rep. 9, 8220 (2019), 10.1038/s41598-019-42946-9]. Our results also highlight the need to revisit these questions in the Mediterranean and test their validity with new technologies, field methods, and data. By applying stochastic models to the Mediterranean region, we can place Cyprus and large islands in general as attractive and favorable destinations for paleolithic peoples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the results of the geochemical characterisation of complete obsidian assemblages dating to the Early Aceramic Neolithic (8200–6900 Cal BC) and located in Cyprus, eastern Mediterranean. Obsidian artefacts have over the years been recovered from a number of Early Holocene archaeological sites on the island of Cyprus. As there are no obsidian sources on Cyprus, the presence of obsidian island-wide indicates long-distance sea transport/distribution, central Anatolia usually considered as the main supplying region. Portable XRF technology (X-ray Fluorescence Spectrometry) was applied to determine numbers of obsidian sources represented in complete archaeological assemblages and address research questions concerning the social landscape Cyprus was part of during the Early Holocene, a time of significant change in the broader eastern Mediterranean region.

This study presents an overview of obsidian use from archaeological sites located on the island of Cyprus and spanning the period broadly defined as the Aceramic Neolithic (ca. 8900-5200 Cal bc). Diachronic changes in the use of this exotic raw material are investigated through the study of the quantities, general typo-technological characteristics and context reflected in the obsidian assemblages. Traditionally, Cyprus has been regarded as a marginal and isolated region within the eastern Mediterranean until the appearance of copper metallurgy. However, the presence of artefacts made of obsidian from multiple sources located at least a few hundred kilometres distant suggests that the island's inhabitants during the Early Holocene engaged in an active social landscape both on the island and between the island and its neighbouring mainland. By using obsidian as a proxy for social communication, this study discusses the movement of obsidian objects between people, places and groups in the early prehistory of the eastern Mediterranean, and the social mechanisms of interaction between islands and mainlands at a time of change for the wider Mediterranean world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The hypothesized main drivers of megafauna extinctions in the late Quaternary have wavered between over-exploitation by humans and environmental change, with recent investigations demonstrating more nuanced synergies between these drivers depending on taxon, spatial scale, and region. However, most studies still rely on comparing archaeologically based chronologies of timing of initial human arrival into naïve ecosystems and palaeontologically inferred dates of megafauna extinctions. Conclusions arising from comparing chronologies also depend on the reliability of dated evidence, dating uncertainties, and correcting for the low probability of preservation (Signor-Lipps effect). While some models have been developed to test the susceptibility of megafauna to theoretical offtake rates, none has explicitly linked human energetic needs, prey choice, and hunting efficiency to examine the plausibility of human-driven extinctions. Using the island of Cyprus in the terminal Pleistocene as an ideal test case because of its late human settlement (~14.2-13.2 ka), small area (~11 000 km 2 ), and low megafauna diversity (2 species), we developed stochastic models of megafauna population dynamics, with offtake dictated by human energetic requirements, prey choice, and hunting-efficiency functions to test whether the human population at the end of the Pleistocene could have caused the extinction of dwarf hippopotamus ( Phanourios minor ) and dwarf elephants ( Palaeoloxodon cypriotes ). Our models reveal not only that the estimated human population sizes ( n = 3000-7000) in Late Pleistocene Cyprus could have easily driven both species to extinction within < 1000 years, the model predictions match the observed, Signor-Lipps-corrected chronological sequence of megafauna extinctions inferred from the palaeontological record ( P. minor at ~12-11.1 ka, followed by P. cypriotes at ~10.3-9.1 ka).