Caprine dental microwear reveals livestock management and exploitation of landscape during the Middle and Late Bronze Age of the Balearic Islands (ca. 1500–850 cal. BC)

Abstract

In the last few decades, bioarchaeological studies have grown exponentially on the Balearic Islands. In general, animal husbandry based on domestic triad and a Mediterranean macchia landscape is well-attested during the prehistory of this archipelago. Despite providing meaningful data about dietary patterns and livestock practices, dental microwear analyses on animal teeth have not been previously applied to the research of the Balearic Islands. This study presents the results of dental microwear analyses from 107 caprine teeth from seven archaeological sites from the Balearics dated from the Middle and Late Bronze Age. The results suggest that sheep and goats were predominantly browsers, having a shrubby-predominant diet, with the exception of Cala Blanca caprines (Menorca) that were mixed feeders with a tendency towards a grazering diet. Dental microwear results also suggest that caprines from two archaeological sites located on the coast did not feed near to the settlements, thus suggesting livestock movement. The combination of these results with the archaeobotanical information available from some sites has allowed a better understanding about livestock management and its impact on the transformation of the prehistoric landscape of the Balearic Islands.

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