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The earliest pigeon fanciers.

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Neanderthals regularly exploited Rock Doves for food over 40,000 years ago, predating modern humans

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Area of Science:

  • Paleoanthropology
  • Archaeology
  • Ornithology

Background:

  • Feral Pigeons, descendants of Rock Doves, live globally alongside humans.
  • Rock Doves naturally inhabit rocky areas, nesting in caves and on cliffs.
  • This behavior historically facilitated close interactions with early humans.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the ancient association between humans and Rock Doves.
  • To determine the timeline of Rock Dove exploitation by hominins.
  • To assess Neanderthal capabilities in utilizing avian resources.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of archaeological evidence from Gorham's Cave, Gibraltar.
  • Radiometric dating of Rock Dove remains and associated artifacts.
  • Paleoenvironmental reconstruction to understand hominin-cave-bird interactions.

Main Results:

  • Evidence shows Neanderthals exploited Rock Doves for food for over 40,000 years.
  • The earliest signs of this exploitation date back at least 67,000 years ago.
  • Repeated evidence across different time periods indicates regular, not sporadic, exploitation.

Conclusions:

  • Neanderthals possessed significant, previously unappreciated, abilities to regularly exploit birds.
  • This practice by Neanderthals predates the arrival of modern humans in Europe.
  • Rock Dove exploitation by Neanderthals represents an independent innovation in resource utilization.