Participation of IPHES-CERCA in the international conference “Small Prey, Big Insights: Unraveling their role in Archaeology”
. Between 29 and 31 October 2025, the international conference Small Prey, Big Insights: Unraveling their role in Archaeology was held at the Faculty of Geography and History of the University of Valencia, dedicated to the study of small prey in archaeological, ethnographic and taphonomic contexts.
The event, organized by the Department of Prehistory, Archaeology and Ancient History of the University of Valencia, the Museum of Prehistory of Valencia, the University of La Laguna and ICArEHB (Portugal), brought together specialists from more than ten countries to discuss the role of small vertebrates —such as rabbits, reptiles, fish or birds— in subsistence strategies and in the formation of archaeological records.
Researchers from IPHES-CERCA had a prominent participation, with oral communications and posters addressing taphonomic, paleoecological and experimental issues at key sites such as Atapuerca, Quibas, El Salt and Cova Foradada.
Communications and posters with participation of IPHES-CERCA
1.- Cristina Real, Milena Carvalho, Jonathan Haws, Leopoldo Pérez, Anna Rufà i Alfred Sanchis. It all started with a rabbit: new paths to old questions.
2.- Saverio Bartolini-Lucenti, Joan Madurell-Malapeira, Andrea Faggi, Albert Navarro-Gil, Jordi Agustí, Pedro Piñero. On the trails of the small hunters: new insights from Quibas (Late Early Pleistocene; Abanilla, Murcia)
Abstract: The study focuses on the small carnivore assemblage from the Early Pleistocene site of Quibas (Murcia), where species such as Lynx pardinus, Felis silvestris or Vulpes alopecoides have been identified. These predators, sensitive to environmental changes, allow the reconstruction of a mosaic landscape of grasslands and forests, and illustrate the ecological role of these small hunters in Pleistocene contexts.
3.- Leopoldo Pérez et al. First taphonomic insights into lagomorph accumulations at the Aurignacian levels of Cova Foradada (Xàbia, Spain)
Abstract: Taphonomic study of the leporid accumulations at the Aurignacian levels of Cova Foradada (Xàbia), providing new data on the origin and formation processes of these faunal assemblages.
4.- Albert Navarro-Gil, Sara García-Morato, Marc Furió, Shubham Pal, Claudia Iannicelli, Casto Laborda-López, Jordi Agustí, Pedro Piñero. Taphonomic signatures in a small mammal assemblage from the Early Pleistocene site of Quibas (Southern Iberian Peninsula)
Abstract: The taphonomic analysis of small mammals from level QS-2/3 of Quibas shows an accumulation mainly produced by nocturnal raptors (Strix aluco), with little hydrodynamic alteration. The paleoecological data point to an open woodland environment during the beginning of the Jaramillo subchron.
5.- Javier Villalobos, Palmira Saladié, Antonio Rodríguez-Hidalgo. Taphonomic insights into small prey from Gran Dolina (Atapuerca, Spain): sublevels TD10.3 and TD10.4
Abstract: Sublevels TD10.3 and TD10.4 of Gran Dolina show mixed faunal assemblages dominated by carnivores, with a significant fraction of small prey (rodents, birds, leporids). The taphonomic analysis reveals predator marks, fractures and absence of human evidence, suggesting complex natural accumulations.
6.- Jaime Mir-Lápido, Leopoldo Pérez, Santiago Sossa-Ríos, Carolina Mallol, Cristo M. Hernández Gómez. The leporids of El Salt: archaeostratigraphic study on the origin of bone assemblages of the Xb stratigraphic unit
Abstract: The study of the El Salt site (Alcoy, Alicante) combines taphonomic analysis and GIS tools to understand the origin of rabbit assemblages. The results show differentiated natural and anthropogenic phases, providing new perspectives for spatial and stratigraphic analysis of leporid accumulations in the Middle Paleolithic.
7.- Maria Boada, Rosa Huguet. The mustelid clue: tracing hidden predators in leporidae record from level TE9d at Sima del Elefante site (Sierra de Atapuerca, Spain)
Abstract: The analysis of leporid remains from level TE9d at the Sima del Elefante identifies actions of various predators, including small mustelids, often overlooked in taphonomic studies. The work improves the understanding of the formation processes of the oldest faunal record of Atapuerca.
8.- Antonio Rodríguez-Hidalgo, Carmen Núñez-Lahuerta, Juan Ignacio Morales. Taphonomic origin of small game remains across the Middle-to-Upper Paleolithic sequence of Cova Foradada (Calafell, NE Iberia)
Abstract: Research on the origin and taphonomic transformation of small prey remains throughout the Middle-to-Upper Paleolithic sequence of Cova Foradada (Calafell).
9.- Souksavath Sanphasouk, Maria Joana Gabucio, Patricia Martín Rodríguez. Following the lynx: taphonomic insights into leporid accumulations from Unit 2 of Cova del Coll Verdaguer (Iberian Peninsula)
Abstract: Study of rabbit accumulations at Cova del Coll Verdaguer to determine the role of the lynx as the main taphonomic agent.
10.- Francesc Marginedas, Antonio Rodríguez-Hidalgo, Sergi García i Palmira Saladié. Evaluating the taphonomic role of erinaceus europaeus in the modification of rabbit bones.
11.- Mariana Nabais, Ruth Blasco, Iratxe Boneta, David Gonçalves, Marina Igreja, Valentina Lubrano i Anna Rufà. Raw vs roasted: reconstructing early human butchery practices of terrapins and tortoises.
12.- Mario Marqueta, Maria Boada, Carmen Núñez-Lahuerta i Rosa Huguet. The feast of the eurasian eagleowl (Bubo bubo).
13.- Goizane Alonso, Anna Rufà I Ruth Blasco. Unraveling neanderthal use of small prey.
14.- Antonio Rodríguez-Hidalgo, Ruth Blasco, Maria Boada, Milena Carvalho, Rodrigo García-Martín, Jonathan Haws, Rosa Huguet, Juan Marín, Francesc Marginedas, Mario Marqueta, Clara Mielgo, Mariana Nabais, Carmen Núñez-Lahuerta, Leopoldo Pérez, Cristina Real, Anna Rufà, Palmira Saladié, Alfred Sanchis, Montserrat Sanz, Alicia Sanz-Royo, Javier Villalobos. Lines in question: a collaborative blind test on bone surface modifications in small game taphonomy.
15.- Antonio Rodríguez-Hidalgo i Palmira Saladié. One swallow does not make a summer: assessing the role of small game in the subsistence strategies of pre-neanderthals at Gran Dolina TD10 (Atapuerca).
6.- Leopoldo Pérez, María Luz Arce, Alba Soto, Magdalena Gómez-Puche, Josep Casabó, Javier Fernández-López de Pablo. First taphonomic insights into lagomorph accumulations at the Aurignacian levels of Cova Foradada (Xàbia, Spain)
Abstract: The study presents new data on rabbit accumulations in the Aurignacian levels of Cova Foradada (Xàbia). The analyses indicate a combination of natural, human and predator origins, with diachronic variations providing a more complex view of subsistence strategies.
An international and interdisciplinary research
The presence of IPHES-CERCA in this conference highlights its contribution to the international debate on small prey and their role in Paleolithic economies, from taphonomic, experimental and paleoecological perspectives.
These contributions reinforce the projection of the center in research on the interaction between humans and small fauna, an essential field for understanding the diversity of human adaptations throughout the Pleistocene.