Abstract
Variations in small game hunting along the northern and eastern rims of the Mediterranean Sea and results from predator-prey simulation modeling indicate that human population densities increased abruptly during the late Middle Paleolithic and again during the Upper and Epi-Paleolithic periods. The demographic pulses are evidenced by increasing reliance on agile, fast- reproducing partridges, hares, and rabbits at the expense of slow- reproducing but easily caught tortoises and marine shellfish and, concurrently, climate-independent size diminution in tortoises and shellfish. The results indicate that human populations of the early Middle Paleolithic were exceptionally small and highly dispersed.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 190-194 |
Number of pages | 5 |
Journal | Science |
Volume | 283 |
Issue number | 5399 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Jan 8 1999 |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- General