New record of cold-adapted fauna on the Castilian Plateau: Woolly rhinoceros – Coelodonta antiquitatis (Blumenbach, 1799) – at La Mina (Burgos, Spain)

Abstract

La Mina is one of three sites, along with Cueva Millán and La Ermita, located in the middle course of the Arlanza river. La Mina was excavated for the first time in 2006 and three test pits were carried out. In one of them, evidence of two Palaeolithic occupations was identified and several remains of woolly rhinoceros were recovered. Amino acid racemisation dating yielded an age of 52.5 ka BP, the earliest Upper Pleistocene date for Coelodonta antiquitatis on the Iberian Peninsula. This new record may have several implications for understanding the access routes to the Castilian Plateau, together with the definition of a new migratory wave of this species at the end of the Pleistocene. The location of La Mina on the Castilian Plateau may help researchers to complete the movements of this species through the Middle and Upper Palaeolithic on the Iberian Peninsula.

3rd Palaeontological Virtual Congress: palaeontology in the virtual era

“…Arceredillo et al . (2023) describe a new record of the woolly rhinoceros Coelodonta antiquitatis from Central Spain; Arjanto et al . (2023) describe a new assemblage of small mammals from the Late Glacial of Iberian Peninsula; Chukwuma-Orji (2023) describes the palynostratigraphy, biochronology and palaeobathymetry from at a section of Awaizombe 1 well, from the Eastern Niger Delta (Nigeria); Collareta et al .…”