title: Taphonomic Analysis of the Faunal Assemblage Associated with the Hominins (Australopithecus sediba) from the Early Pleistocene Cave Deposits of Malapa, South Africa.
abstract: Here we present the results of a taphonomic study of the faunal assemblage associated with the hominin fossils (Australopithecus sediba) from the Malapa site. Results include estimation of body part representation, mortality profiles, type of fragmentation, identification of breakage patterns, and microscopic analysis of bone surfaces. The diversity of the faunal spectrum, presence of animals with climbing proclivities, abundance of complete and/or articulated specimens, occurrence of antimeric sets of elements, and lack of carnivore-modified bones, indicate that animals accumulated via a natural death trap leading to an area of the cave system with no access to mammalian scavengers. The co-occurrence of well preserved fossils, carnivore coprolites, deciduous teeth of brown hyaena, and some highly fragmented and poorly preserved remains supports the hypothesis of a mixing of sediments coming from distinct chambers, which collected at the bottom of the cave system through the action of periodic water flow. This combination of taphonomic features explains the remarkable state of preservation of the hominin fossils as well as some of the associated faunal material.
authors.affiliation: Evolutionary Studies Institute, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa; Department of Science and Technology/National Research Foundation Centre of Excellence in Palaeosciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.
authors.forename: Aurore
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Val
authors.affiliation: School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, James Cook University, Townsville, Australia; School of Geosciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.
authors.forename: Paul H G M
authors.initials: PH
authors.lastname: Dirks
authors.affiliation: Evolutionary Studies Institute, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa; Department of Science and Technology/National Research Foundation Centre of Excellence in Palaeosciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa; School of Geosciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.
authors.forename: Lucinda R
authors.initials: LR
authors.lastname: Backwell
authors.affiliation: Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Unité Mixte de Recherche 5199 PACEA, Université de Bordeaux, Talence, France; Department of Archaeology, History, Cultural Studies and Religion, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway.
authors.forename: Francesco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: d'Errico
authors.affiliation: Evolutionary Studies Institute, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa; Department of Science and Technology/National Research Foundation Centre of Excellence in Palaeosciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.
authors.forename: Lee R
authors.initials: LR
authors.lastname: Berger
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005580:Fossils; D015186:Hominidae / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D013019:South Africa