A bird assemblage across the MIS 9/8 boundary: The Middle Pleistocene of Galería (Atapuerca)

Quaternary faunal remains are key for the understanding of the effect of climatic changes on both animal and human populations. Here we show for the first time in Atapuerca the analysis of an avian assemblage through the MIS9/8 boundary, a moment of climatic deterioration that coincides with the spread of Neanderthals and the adoption of Levallois technology. A total of 603 bird remains belonging to 17 taxa have been identified in the Middle Pleistocene units GIII and GIV (Galería site, Atapuerca, Spain). The assemblage is dominated by the extinct raven Corvus corax antecorax, followed by other cave-dwelling taxa. The palaeoenvironmental reconstruction points to the presence of open landscapes and water bodies in the lower units. Both the number of remains and the taxa diversity decreases dramatically towards the upper unit. This general decreasing concurs with the beginning of the MIS8 stage, and it is observed in other faunal groups in Atapuerca, pointing to a MIS8 glacial stage in the Iberian Peninsula stronger than previously described. •Fossil birds from Galería (units GIII-GIV) relate to open landscape and water bodies.•Both the richness of remains and the taxa diversity decrease upwards the sequence.•The impoverishment of the bird assemblage is related to MIS8/9 climate deterioration.