Fossil Hyaenidae from Cooper’s Cave, South Africa, and the palaeoenvironmental implications

We present material of the family Hyaenidae from Cooper’s Cave, an early Pleistocene (ca 1.5 Ma) fossil-bearing site in Gauteng, South Africa. This site is exceptionally rich in Carnivora, including five species of Hyaenidae: Chasma-porthetes nitidula , Crocuta ultra , Parahyaena brunnea , Hyaena hyaena and cf. Proteles sp. This diversity is greater than that of the entire family in the modern fauna and is matched at other sites in the vicinity of Cooper’s Cave. This raises issues about time averaging and the carrying capacity of the palaeoenvironment that require resolution if we are to properly understand the environments in which Paranthropus robustus , present at Cooper’s Cave, and other early hominins evolved. In addition, the presence of several hyaenid species with bone-eating/collecting capabilities raises questions about the identity of the accumulators of fossil bone assemblages that have yet to be fully resolved.