The Cueva del Camino site (Pinilla del Valle, Madrid) represents the most complete MIS 5 record from the Iberian Peninsula (away from the Mediterranean margin), including a large accumulation of fossilized remains of small and large vertebrates and two human teeth. The presence of carnivores (mainly hyenas) and humans suggests that the site should be interpreted as a spotted hyena den, a human occupation, or both.During an earlier phase of excavation undertaken during the 1980s, an anthropic origin was suggested for the accumulation at the site.

The origin of most fossil small mammal assemblages is predation by avian or mammalian predators. Bone corrosion by gastric juices observed in these fossils is direct evidence of digestion, and traits of digestion indicate the type of predator involved. However, certain features observed in digested bones, such as rounding and polishing, are similar to the rounding and polishing produced by other processes, particularly abrasion, in which predation is not involved. Misidentification of digestion has major repercussions in palaeoenvironmental and palaeoclimatic interpretations as well as interpretations of biostratigraphy and potential reworking. Digestion is directional and progressive process, primarily affecting the most mineralized tissues (enamel) advancing from the tips to the centre of the anatomical element. In contrast, abrasion identically affects any type of osseous tissue homogeneously rounding the entire skeletal element. Microscopically, digested bones display a distinctive chemical corrosion (‘tornlike’ appearance), whilst abraded bones appear smooth with microstriations and pitting microwear. Here, we present the results of a series of experiments designed to establish new and clear criteria to distinguish bone rounding and polishing caused by digestion from that originating from abrasion.

Microtus cabrerae is an Iberian endemic vole species with specific adaptations to the subhumid Mediterranean climate. Its living populations are under a regressive trend. The earliest known records of Microtus cabrerae date from the late Middle Pleistocene, and it originated from Microtus brecciensis. We describe changes in the geographic distribution of Microtus cabrerae throughout its history based on its palaeontological record, and link them to environmental changes that have taken place since the appearance of Microtus cabrerae. A series of successive chronological intervals comprising the recorded existence of the species was established, so that the majority of the published fossil records of Microtus cabrerae could be used for analysis. For each interval, a map with the inferred distribution of the species was created. The maps were used to establish variations in the species' distribution through time. A first regression in the extent of the distribution of Microtus cabrerae took place in Marine Isotope Stage 2, when the species abandoned south‐eastern France and central Spain, where it had been present since the beginning of the Late Pleistocene. This range contraction was probably due to the global decline in temperatures and rainfall that took place in this period. After a rapid recolonization of most of the previously abandoned areas at the beginning of the Holocene and a remarkable increase in records during the Neolithic, a new gradual decrease of records is observed from the Neolithic to the Roman period, intensifying from c. 2000 years ago onwards and ending with the final disappearance of the species from south‐western France and north‐eastern Iberia. This second decline is linked to the aridification of the Mediterranean entourage that started in the mid‐Holocene and has been enhanced by human modification of the landscape. The species is shown to be sensitive to climate change.

SignificanceThe multiproxy approach represents a novel methodology and a unique opportunity to obtain a more detailed view of ancient resource use. Our multiproxy study, carried out on gomphotheres from Chile, widens potential occupied habitats to closed-canopy forests. This habitat variability supports the hypothesis that the diet of gomphotheres appears to be more constrained by resource availability than by the potential dietary range. We strongly recommend the use of a multiproxy approach, where morphology analyses are complemented by other sources of information. This approach prevents misleading conclusions about the origin of the proxy’s signal from arising, such as a leaf-browsing diet inferred from the dental calculus and microwear not necessarily being indicative of humidity.

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