Scientists from the University of Tübingen have discovered that early Middle Palaeolithic (Stone Age) humans ate turtles, birds and predators, meaning their diets were more diverse than previously thought. The research was published in the journal Scientific Reports.
Scientists analyzed ancient animal remains from Ghar-e-Bufa, a Middle Paleolithic site in Iran that was inhabited between 81,000 and 45,000 years ago.
It is believed that at the beginning of the Paleolithic era, the ancestors of modern humans effectively hunted small and large mammals, but in the Middle Stone Age (300-45 thousand years ago) they fed mainly on ungulates. A new study has shown that the diet of human ancestors at the time also included carnivorous mammals and turtles.
More than 75% of the Ghar-e-Bouf fauna consists of ungulates; species from small to very large: wild goats, wild boars, horses. The research team was also able to identify the bones of several bird species and many predators, including red foxes and leopards. Scratches and traces of use on some of the bones indicate that they were made by ancient people. Judging by the fire marks on the turtles’ shells, they were roasted over fire.
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Source: Gazeta
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