La Sassa Cave
Basic information
Sample name: La Sassa Cave
Reference: M. Gatta, A. Fiorillo, L. Salari, K. F. Achino, M. F. Rolfo, and L. Alessandri. 2022. The faunal assemblage from La Sassa cave (Latium, Italy): Environmental perspective of a Late Pleistocene cave hyena - Brown bear den. Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports 46(103691):1-15 [ER 3783]
Geography
Country: Italy
Coordinate: 41° 25' 29" N, 13° 14' 11" E
Time interval: Late Pleistocene
Max Ma: 0.03022
Min Ma: 0.02919
Age basis: radiocarbon (uncalibrated)
Geography comments: "on the left bank of the Rio Sassa"
there are five uncalibrated 14C dates ranging from 29, 190 to 30, 220 ybp
there are five uncalibrated 14C dates ranging from 29, 190 to 30, 220 ybp
Environment
Lithology: not described
Taphonomic context: carnivore accumulation, cave
Habitat comments: fossils are from 0.4 to 0.8 m "below the original surface floor"
there is abundant archaeological material from the "Copper to Early Bronze age" on up, but there is only a "Very rare Upper Paleolithic lithic industry" including "Three Aurignacian lithic artifacts" from the cave entrance, and it is not clear whether it is from the fossiliferous stratum
based on a detailed taphonomic analysis, the assemblage is interpreted as a hyena and brown bear accumulation (mostly the former) with no involvement of humans
there is abundant archaeological material from the "Copper to Early Bronze age" on up, but there is only a "Very rare Upper Paleolithic lithic industry" including "Three Aurignacian lithic artifacts" from the cave entrance, and it is not clear whether it is from the fossiliferous stratum
based on a detailed taphonomic analysis, the assemblage is interpreted as a hyena and brown bear accumulation (mostly the former) with no involvement of humans
Methods
Life forms: carnivores, rodents, ungulates, other small mammals, birds, turtles
Sampling methods: quarry, screenwash
Sample size: 1000 specimens
Years: 2015 - 2019
Net or trap nights: 0
Basal area status: not applicable
Sampling comments: "Sieving of all sediments, with a 2-mm mesh, was performed"
Metadata
Sample no: 4098
Contributor no: John Alroy
Enterer: John Alroy
Created: 2023-02-23 20:11:24
Modified: 2023-02-23 09:11:24
Abundance distribution
Each square represents a species. Square sizes are proportional to counts. Values are logged.
Statistics
23 species
3 singletons
total count 1000
geometric series index: 31.5
Fisher's α: 4.199
geometric series k: 0.7731
Hurlbert's PIE: 0.8555
Shannon's H: 2.294
Good's u: 0.997
Register
| Testudines indet. | 3 | |
| Aves indet. | 3 | |
| Talpa sp. | 1 | |
| Castor fiber | 1 | |
| Arvicola italicus | 2 | |
| Lepus sp. | 21 | |
| Canis lupus (gray wolf) | 27 | 43.0 kg |
| Vulpes vulpes (red fox) | 46 | |
| Ursus arctos (brown bear) | 160 | |
| Mustela sp. | 2 | |
| Meles meles (European badger) | 2 | 11.0 kg |
| Felis silvestris (European wildcat) | 2 | 4.5 kg |
| †Panthera spelaea (cave lion) | 17 | |
| Crocuta sp. | 77 | |
| "Crocuta crocuta": possibly C. spelaea | ||
| Rhinocerotidae indet. | 1 | |
| Equus ferus (wild horse) | 14 | |
| Equus hemionus hydruntinus (onager) | 6 | |
| "Equus hydruntinus" | ||
| Sus scrofa (pig) | 44 | |
| Capreolus capreolus (roe deer) | 59 | |
| Cervus elaphus (red deer) | 288 | |
| Dama dama (European fallow deer) | 122 | |
| †Bos primigenius (aurochs) | 67 | |
| Rupicapra sp. | 35 | |