Multiproxy evidence for environmental stability in the Lesser Caucasus during the Late Pleistocene

The Lesser Caucasus, situated between Asia and Europe, has long been recognised as a key region for the study of human evolution in terms of the timing and routes of dispersal, as well as, ecological adaptations. In particular, scholars have argued whether stable environments persisted in the region throughout the last glaciation, serving as a refugium for temperate biota, likely attracting human settlement and use. Here, we present the results of a multidisciplinary study of Karin Tak Cave, which contains sediments that accumulated between 48,000 and 24,000 cal yr BP. We examined biostratigraphic changes at the site by looking at the composition of fauna, which we hypothesise to be naturally accumulated, in different stratigraphic phases using traditional zooarchaeological approaches combined with collagen fingerprinting (ZooMS, Zooarchaeology by Mass Spectrometry). To gain further insights into regional palaeoenvironmental conditions, we also applied stable carbon and oxygen isotope analyses to faunal tooth enamel. The obtained results suggest that the onset of the last glaciation did not cause dramatic changes in regional environments, indicating that the Lesser Caucasus was a climatically and ecologically stable region despite significant global climatic changes during this period. •Karin Tak is a Lesser Caucasus palaeontological site that preserves records of the 48,000-24,000-year-old local environment.•Morphological identifications of fossil material combined with ZooMS reveal a rich faunal composition at the site.•Stable carbon and oxygen isotopic analyses indicate a mosaic of forests, shrublands, and grasslands in the Late Pleistocene.•Stable environmental settings persisted in the southeastern Lesser Caucasus throughout late MIS 3 and early MIS 2