Reconstruction of LGM faunal patterns using Species Distribution Modelling. The archaeological record of the Solutrean in Iberia

Abstract

This paper focuses on analyzing the links between archaeological sites and their environments by calculating the catchment areas of Solutrean sites in Iberia and the habitat suitability for the different hunted species in each site. This research uses Geographic Information Systems (GIS) for calculating the catchment areas and Species Distribution Modelling (SDM) for reconstructing potential distributions of prey species. The results of this modelling for the Solutrean sites were then compared to a database on faunal remains. The SDM results show differences between northern and southern Iberia in the habitat suitability for some species. There are also visible differences between the faunal record and in the subsistence strategies in both areas, which can be linked to the climatic and topographic conditions inferred by means of site catchment analysis and the SDM.