Hunting behavior and Neanderthal adaptability in the Late Pleistocene site of Pech-de-l’Aze ´I William Rendu a, b, c, * a Universite´ Toulouse Le Mirail, UMR 5608 TRACES, 5 alle ´e A. Machado, 31058 Toulouse cedex 9, France b University of Michigan, Museum of Anthropology, 4013 Museums Building, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1079, USA c Universite´ Bordeaux 1, PACEA-IPGQ UMR 5199, Avenue des faculte ´s, 33405 Talence, France article info Article history: Received 5 November 2009 Received in revised form 23 January 2010 Accepted 28 January 2010 Keywords: Zooarchaeology Skeletochronology Seasonality Subsistence Settlement pattern Increment Middle Paleolithic abstract The late Mousterian of Acheulian tradition (MTA) site of Pech-de-l’Aze ´ 1 shows a very particular stratigraphic sequence characterized by numerous elements not usually found in Mousterian contexts such as avifauna exploitation and the use of hundreds of mineral pigments. Recent zooarchaeological and skeletochronological analyses provide new insights into the evolution of subsistence behaviors and settlement patterns of the Neanderthals that inhabited the shelter. Due to changes in hunting season, Neanderthals adapted their hunting strategies, exploiting various red deer populations which presented very different behavior. The evolution in the seasonal occupation of the shelter may have been the results of major modifications of its (series of roof collapsed) which induced a shrank in inhabitable space., which forced the Mousterians to adjust the way they used the cavity to its characteristics in order to optimize its exploitation. The conclusions underline the excellent adaptability of the Neanderthals to their physical environment. Ó 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction The spatial organization of activities and the settlement patterns developed by Middle Paleolithic populations have become fundamental issues in the discussion of Neanderthal spatial behavior and in reconstructing their scheduling of subsistence activities (Conard and Prindiville, 2000; Costamagno et al., 2006; Kuhn, 1995; Meignen et al., 1998; Moncel et al., 1998). In this context, hunting seasonality plays an important role in identifying and understanding the temporal organization of the subsistence economy. Numerous methods, including dental eruption sequences, dental microwear analysis and skeletochronology, were developed with this aim (Monks, 1981; Pike-Tay and Cosgrove, 2002; Rivals and Deniaux, 2005; Rivals et al., 2009; Saxon and Higham, 1968; Valensi and Psathi, 2004). While differential conservation of the deciduous teeth or the scarcity of young indi- viduals in an assemblage may limit the application of the dental eruption method, cementum increment analysis, when the diagenesis modifications of the dental structures are taken into account, appears to be a useful method to establish the season of death of prey found in Paleolithic contexts. Therefore it has largely been applied these past few decades (e.g.: Burke, 1995; Gordon, 1988; Miracle and O’Brien, 1998; Pike-Tay et al., 2008; Spiess, 1979). Although numerous studies have dealt with the seasonality of Mousterian prey procurement, most focused on settlement implications (Lieberman, 1993; Pike-Tay et al., 1999; Wall, 2005). Few have directly concerned prey selection and, therefore, hunting behavior (Rendu and Armand, 2009). Throughout the year, ungulates go through several physiological phases (rut, pregnancy, parturition) which influence their physical condition and, consequently, the quality and quantity of animal raw materials (meat, grease and marrow, quality of the skin, antlers.) they are able to furnish to the hunters (Speth, 1983; Speth and Spielmann, 1983). Linked to these biological changes, the social behavior of the prey is largely modified. Gathering and dispersal of the herds, distance of daily movements and awareness of the individuals will differ, in a predictable way, between male, female and young within the same population (Berger, 1986; Berger and Cunningham, 1994; Duncan, 1992). Consequently, seasonal fluctu- ations in resource availability may have important implications for the hunting strategies and settlement patterns of the hunter– gatherers (Mauss, 1906; Monks, 1981). In this study, I highlight how combining zooarchaeological and skeletochronological data provide valuable insights into Neander- thal hunting behavior that might not be evident using either of * Universite ´ Toulouse Le Mirail, UMR 5608 TRACES, 5 alle ´e A. Machado, 31058 Toulouse cedex 9, France. Tel.: þ33 5 61 50 24 48. E-mail address: williamrendu@hotmail.fr Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Journal of Archaeological Science journal homepage: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/jas 0305-4403/$ – see front matter Ó 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.jas.2010.01.037 Journal of Archaeological Science 37 (2010) 1798–1810