Early evidence for bear exploitation during MIS 9 from the site of Schöningen 12 (Germany).

A cutmarked bear metatarsal and phalanx from the German open-air sites of Schöningen 12 II-1 and 12 B, respectively, correlated with the interglacial optimum of MIS 9 (ca. 320 ka), provide early evidence for the exploitation of bear skins. Archaeological sites with evidence of bear exploitation from the Lower Paleolithic are rare, with only Boxgrove (United Kingdom) and Bilzingsleben (Germany) yielding cutmarked bear bones indicating skinning. We interpret these finds as evidence for bear hunting and primary access since bear skins are best extracted shortly after the animal's death. The very thin cutmarks found on the Schöningen specimens indicate delicate butchering and show similarities in butchery patterns to bears from other Paleolithic sites. The Eurasian Lower Paleolithic record does not show any evidence for the exploitation of bear meat; only Middle Paleolithic sites, such as Biache-Saint-Vaast (France; ca. 175 ka) and Taubach (Germany; ca. 120 ka), yield evidence for the exploitation of both skin and meat from bear carcasses. Bear skins have high insulating properties and might have played a role in the adaptations of Middle Pleistocene hominins to the cold and harsh winter conditions of Northwestern Europe.

Shoulder osteoarthritis in a European saber-toothed cat (Homotherium latidens) from the Lower Palaeolithic site of Schöningen (Germany).

Evaluation of a right ventral scapula fragment from a mature Homotherium latidens from Schöningen, Germany (337-300 ka before present - MIS 9) revealed lesions consisting of an osteophyte at the caudal border of the glenoid cavity, and a large, multilobular, cystic feature in the medio-caudal glenoid cavity. Based on the type of lesions, their localization, their severity, and exclusion of several nutritional and other etiologies such as immune mediated disease, joint infection (septic arthritis), and joint tumors, we conclude that the lesion was caused by trauma or age-related shoulder osteoarthritis (or possibly both). We cannot speculate whether the condition was symptomatic, but if it was, the animal must have functioned well enough to hunt or scavenge, since it survived a significant period of lesion development.

The larger mammal fauna from the Lower Paleolithic Schöningen Spear site and its contribution to hominin subsistence.

The locality Schöningen (Germany) is an important source of knowledge about Lower Paleolithic hominin subsistence. The locality includes a series of sites dated to the late Middle Pleistocene with a Holsteinian (MIS 11) and Reinsdorf Interglacial (MIS 9) age. One of the youngest sites is Schöningen 13 II-4, the Spear Horizon site also known as the Horse Butchery site. The organic remains excavated here are exceptionally well-preserved as they were embedded in anaerobic, waterlogged sediments in an area where the groundwater is rich in calcium carbonate. The fossil assemblage is ideal for the study of patterns in hominin interference with the mammalian species encountered at the site. The vertebrate record is extensive and very diverse. The fossil larger carnivore guild of the Spear Horizon faunal assemblage includes saber-toothed cat, fox, and wolf. Herbivores are represented by an elephant species, two equid species, two rhinoceros species, two cervid species, and two large bovid species. Evidence of hominin interference presents itself as either marks on skeletal remains related to the use of bones as knapping tools or hammers, or as marks that indicate butchering activities such as skinning, dismembering, defleshing, filleting, and marrow extraction. The humerus of the saber-toothed cat clearly shows that the bone has been used as a knapping tool. The fossil remains of the other larger carnivores do not show any signs of hominin interference or exploitation. This also applies to the limited number of elephant and rhinoceros remains found at the site. The large horse Equus mosbachensis dominates the larger mammal record and played a major role in hominin subsistence. Marks on the horse bones indicate that a large number of carcasses have been butchered. Traces on the fossil remains of both red deer (Cervus elaphus) and the large bovids also indicate exploitation by Lower Paleolithic hominins.

The European saber-toothed cat (Homotherium latidens) found in the "Spear Horizon" at Schöningen (Germany).

The 300,000 year old Lower Paleolithic site Schöningen 13 II-4 became world famous with the discovery of the oldest well-preserved and complete wooden spears. Through ongoing excavations, new archaeological discoveries of scientific importance are still being made from the same archaeological layer where the spears were found. In this context, remains of a rare carnivore species, the European saber-toothed cat (Homotherium latidens), were recovered. Here we present five teeth and one humerus fragment that are unambiguously from two individual saber-toothed cats. The humerus is a unique specimen; it shows evidence of hominin impacts and use as a percussor. The Homotherium remains from Schöningen are the best documented finds of this species in an archaeological setting and they are amongst the youngest specimens of Homotherium in Europe. The presence of this species as a carnivore competitor would certainly have impacted the lives of late Middle Pleistocene hominins. The discovery illustrates the possible day-to-day challenges that the Schöningen hominins would have faced and suggests that the wooden spears were not necessarily only used for hunting, but possibly also as a weapon for self-defense.