@article {330055,
	title = {Middle and Late Pleistocene Denisovan subsistence at Baishiya Karst Cave},
	journal = {Nature},
	year = {2024},
	month = {2024/07/03},
	abstract = {<p>Genetic and fragmented palaeoanthropological data suggest that Denisovans were once widely distributed across eastern Eurasia1\&ndash;3. Despite limited archaeological evidence, this indicates that Denisovans were capable of adapting to a highly diverse range of environments. Here we integrate zooarchaeological and proteomic analyses of the late Middle to Late Pleistocene faunal assemblage from Baishiya Karst Cave on the Tibetan Plateau, where a Denisovan mandible and Denisovan sedimentary mitochondrial DNA were found3,4. Using zooarchaeology by mass spectrometry, we identify a new hominin rib specimen that dates to approximately 48\&ndash;32 thousand years ago (layer 3). Shotgun proteomic analysis taxonomically assigns this specimen to the Denisovan lineage, extending their presence at Baishiya Karst Cave well into the Late Pleistocene. Throughout the stratigraphic sequence, the faunal assemblage is dominated by Caprinae, together with megaherbivores, carnivores, small mammals and birds. The high proportion of anthropogenic modifications on the bone surfaces suggests that Denisovans were the primary agent of faunal accumulation. The cha{\^\i}ne op{\'e}ratoire of carcass processing indicates that animal taxa were exploited for their meat, marrow and hides,\&nbsp;while bone was also used as raw material for the production of tools. Our results shed light on the behaviour of Denisovans and their adaptations to the diverse and fluctuating environments of the late Middle and Late Pleistocene of eastern Eurasia.</p>
},
	isbn = {1476-4687},
	doi = {https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-024-07612-9},
	url = {https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-07612-9},
	author = {Xia, Huan and Zhang, Dongju and Wang, Jian and Fagern{\"a}s, Zandra and Li, Ting and Li, Yuanxin and Yao, Juanting and Lin, Dongpeng and Troch{\'e}, Gaudry and Smith, Geoff M. and Chen, Xiaoshan and Cheng, Ting and Shen, Xuke and Han, Yuanyuan and Olsen, Jesper V. and Shen, Zhongwei and Pei, Zhiqi and Hublin, Jean-Jacques and Chen, Fahu and Welker, Frido}
}
