Demography and the extinction of European Neanderthals

Sørensen, Bent

doi:10.1016/j.jaa.2010.12.003

Cited by 45 publications

(25 citation statements)

References 57 publications

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“…Buikstra and Konigsberg, 1985;Buikstra et al, 1986;Greene et al, 1986;Konigsberg and Frankenberg, 2005;cf. Bocquet-Appel and Masset, 1982;Corruccini et al, 1989;Petersen, 1975, and these parameters can be modelled; Bocquet-Appel and Degioanni, 2013;Sørensen, 2011;Surovell, 2000;Zubrow, 1989).…”

Section: Palaeodemography: How Do We Study Demography From the Archaementioning

confidence: 99%

The demography of the Upper Palaeolithic hunter–gatherers of Southwestern France: A multi-proxy approach using archaeological data

French

2015

Journal of Anthropological Archaeology

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a b s t r a c tDemographic change is increasingly cited as an explanation for many of the patterns seen in the Palaeolithic archaeological record, following the assumption of a relationship between population size and material culture espoused by dual inheritance theory. However, the empirical testing of this relationship relies on the ability to extract information about past population patterns from the archaeological record. Using the extensive and well-studied record of the Upper Palaeolithic (39,500-11,500 cal BP) hunter-gatherers of Southwestern France as a case-study, this paper compares the evidence for changes in relative population size as seen in three popular archaeological proxies for demographic change (site counts, site sizes, and occupation intensity estimates). These proxies present conflicting results across the sequence; a finding which is explored through the impact of taphonomic biases and past research agendas. Numbers of sheltered sites and quantities of retouched stone tools are suggested to be the most reliable demographic proxies. The problem of equifinality of interpretation in archaeological proxies for demography is examined for the Aurignacian and Gravettian periods in the region, with changes in lithic raw material, faunal acquisition strategies, and hunter-gatherer mobility all potentially contributing to the patterns documented.

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Section: Palaeodemography: How Do We Study Demography From the Archaementioning

confidence: 99%

The demography of the Upper Palaeolithic hunter–gatherers of Southwestern France: A multi-proxy approach using archaeological data

French

2015

Journal of Anthropological Archaeology

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“…Our knowledge about Neanderthals has greatly increased over the last two decades, with more than 2000 research papers published in areas as diverse as chronology (Gaudzinski-Windheuser et al, 2014;Higham et al, 2014), ecology (Finlayson & Carri on, 2007;Henry et al, 2010), population dynamics (Sørensen, 2011;Bocquet-Appel & Degioanni, 2013), adaptive traits (Sørensen, 2009;Rae et al, 2011), diet (Henry et al, 2010;Hardy & Moncel, 2011), technology, cognition and behaviour Shaw et al, 2012), genetics (Briggs et al, 2009), and their relationship with anatomically modern humans (Sankararaman et al, 2012;Hortol a & Mart ınez-Navarro, 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The ecological niche and distribution of Neanderthals during the Last Interglacial

Benito

Svenning

Nielsen

et al. 2016

Journal of Biogeography

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Aim In this paper, we investigate the role of climate and topography in shaping the distribution of Neanderthals (Homo neanderthalensis) at different spatial scales. To this end, we compiled the most comprehensive data set on the distribution of this species during the Last Interglacial optimum (MIS 5e) available to date. This was used to calibrate a palaeo‐species distribution model, and analyse variable importance at continental and local scales. Location Europe and Irano‐Turanian region (20° N to 70° N, 10° W to 70° E). Methods We used archaeological records and palaeoclimatic and topographic predictors to calibrate a model based on an ensemble of generalized linear models fitted with different combinations of predictors and weighted background data. Area under the curve scores computed by leave‐one‐out were used to assess variable importance at the continental scale, while local regression combined with recursive partition trees was used to assess variable importance at the local scale. Results Annual rainfall and winter temperatures were the most important predictors at the continental scale, while topography and summer rainfall defined habitat suitability at the local scale. The highest habitat suitability scores were observed along the Mediterranean coastlines. Mountain ranges and continental plains showed low habitat suitability values. Main conclusions The model results confirmed that abiotic drivers played an important role in shaping Neanderthals distribution during the Last Interglacial. The high suitability of the Mediterranean coastlines and the low suitability values of most sites at the northern and eastern distribution limits (Germany, Hungary, Ukraine) challenge the notion of Neanderthals as a species with preference for colder environments.

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“…Recently proposed models [35,42,46,47] estimate an HN numerosity ranging from 5000 to 12,000 in their archaic periods (430,000 yBP), growing slowly to 75-100,000 individuals (1150,00 yBP), and then steadily declining from about 50,000 yBP to their extinction around 15,000 yBP.…”

Section: Homo Neanderthalensismentioning

confidence: 99%

The Exergy Footprint as a Sustainability Indicator: An Application to the Neanderthal–Sapiens Competition in the Late Pleistocene

Sciubba¹

2019

Sustainability

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A thermodynamic analysis of population dynamics and of sustainability provides rigor to many important issues. In this work, the “system society” is analysed in connection with the “system environment” using an exergy metric, and the method includes an internalization of the externalities (capital, labour, environmental effects) conducted on the basis of a “system + environment” balance. In this perspective, this study investigates the Late Pleistocene extinction of the Homo neanderthalensis, which took place in a geologically short time and in the presence of a competing species, the Homo sapiens. The case in study is not trivial, and its choice not casual: in those times, the only factor that could lead to an advantage of one group over the other was their respective resource use intensity. A specific indicator, the exergy footprint (EF), is here applied to measure the total amount of primary resources required to produce a certain (material or immaterial) commodity, including the resources needed for the physical survival of the individuals. On the basis of the available data, the results of a steady-state analysis show that the EF of the Neanderthal was higher than that of the Sapiens, and that with both species sharing the same ecological niche in a time of dwindling resources, the less frugal of the two was also more fragile in an evolutionary sense.

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Demography and the extinction of European Neanderthals

Cited by 45 publications

References 57 publications

The demography of the Upper Palaeolithic hunter–gatherers of Southwestern France: A multi-proxy approach using archaeological data

The demography of the Upper Palaeolithic hunter–gatherers of Southwestern France: A multi-proxy approach using archaeological data

The ecological niche and distribution of Neanderthals during the Last Interglacial

The Exergy Footprint as a Sustainability Indicator: An Application to the Neanderthal–Sapiens Competition in the Late Pleistocene

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