From meat availability to hominin and carnivore biomass: A paleosynecological approach to reconstructing predator-prey biomass ratios in the Pleistocene

• Published in: Quaternary science reviews 2024-03, Vol.328, p.108474, Article 108474
• Main Authors: Rodríguez-Gómez, Guillermo, Martín-González, Jesús A., Espigares, M. Patrocinio, Bermúdez de Castro, José María, Martínez-Navarro, Bienvenido, Arsuaga, Juan Luis, Palmqvist, Paul
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Faunal assemblages; Large mammals; Palaeosynecology; Paleoecological modeling; Prey-predator ratios
• ISSN: 0277-3791; 1873-457X
• DOI: 10.1016/j.quascirev.2023.108474

Reconstructing the conditions and circumstances under which the human lineage evolved is of great interest to those disciplines related to human evolution, especially in fields such as archaeoecology and human paleoecology. A mathematical model was presented almost a decade ago aimed to reconstructing the human populations that the Pleistocene paleoecosystems could support. This model followed a paleosynecological perspective, being focused on: (i) estimating the availability of meat resources in the paleoecosystems, as these resources are vital for human survival; and (ii) measuring the level of competition for these resources among the members of the carnivore guild, including hominins. The model has been applied since then to several Pleistocene localities of Europe, with particular emphasis on the Orce and Sierra de Atapuerca sites. In this study, we use the model for estimating predator-prey biomass ratios and compare the model outputs with the values measured in present-day African ecosystems. The results obtained confirm that our paleosynecological approach provides estimates of predator-prey biomass ratios that are broadly similar to those measured in the extant ecosystems. However, our estimates tend to be slightly higher than expected, which is probably due to the weight of species that satisfy part of their nutritional requirements with resources other than the meat from large herbivores. This allows us to assume that our model performs relatively well, although it has room for methodological improvements. •Our paleosynecological model (PSEco) analyzes trophic relationships in the Pleistocene communities of large mammals.•The model is aimed to understanding the ecological conditions of human evolution during the Pleistocene.•PSEco estimates prey meat availability by the secondary consumers, carnivores and hominins.•PSEco provides estimates on predator-prey biomass ratios in the Pleistocene faunal assemblages, which are similar to those observed in modern African ecosystems.•PSEco is a useful tool for estimating meat availability, its distribution among the members of the carnivore guild and carnivore biomass.