Integrative attempts to study : Biomechanical archaeology of first and second phalanges as a proxy for deciphering animal activity patterns in prehistoric time

Kaveh Yousef Pouran∗†1, Maria Sa˜naSegu´ı1, and Juan Anton Barcelo1

1Universitat Aut`onomade Barcelona [Barcelona] (UAB) – UAB Campus 08193 Bellaterra Barcelona, Espagne

R´esum´e

Wild animals expend considerable amount of energy in foraging to satisfy requirements such as food and water, social interactions and finding shelter. In captivity, they depend on human and expended energy and time is much reduced. Knowing the behavioral aspects of wild-domestic evolution is necessary to comprehend domestication process. We present in this communication the results obtained with the application of biomechanical concepts to the study of bovine domestication processes. Considering the recent findings on the bone biomechanics, with the corporation of multi- body dynamics and locomotion simulation, this work is oriented to stablish morphological indicators differentiating domestication at the transitional stage based on behavioral changes experienced by captive or tamed animals. A series of mathematical algorithms are proposed for accessing the information enfolded in bone tissue. Load estimation algorithm, which is based on bone histomorphology, provides an opportunity to quantitatively examine activity level of animals. With the aim to obtain new data about cattle domestication in the Near East, a total of 112 cattle first and second phalanx recovered in Halula site (7700 cal BC to 5500 cal BC, valley, ) has been selected and scanned. Scanned data were converted to .obj surface structure and surfaces then were optimized and 315 landmarks were selected and pinpointed on each specimen. Superimposed coordinates were analyzed by principal component analysis. The results show that it is possible to dif- ferentiate between free range and captive types and to deduce animal activities and foraging behavior comparing expected and experienced loading. In this line, bone remodeling algorithms became a practical tool to understand and even simulate animal behavior in archaeological context.

Mots-Cl´es: , Domestication, Biomechanics, Morphometrics

∗Intervenant †Auteur correspondant: [email protected]

sciencesconf.org:uispp2018:181009