Consumption of <i>Conepatus chinga</i> in Paso Otero 4 site (Pampean region, Argentina): butchery evidence and human tooth marks

Abstract

Paso Otero 4 (PO4) is an archaeological site located in the Pampean region of Argentina. The site corresponds to a hunter-gatherers base-camp occupied in different periods of the Early and the Middle Holocene. During the faunal analyses, 13 specimens assigned to Conepatus were identified. These bones present evidence of human butchery as well as tooth marks produced by predators. The main goal of this study is to present the information about Conepatus bones from PO4 site and to describe the tooth marks in these specimens in order to determine which agent originated them. These marks were described both qualitative and quantitatively. The damage pattern coincides with that generated by humans during prey consumption, as described in ethnoarchaeological and experimental studies. Pits were measured through the analyses of digital pictures. While these measures are consistent with a human agent, they also overlap with modifications produced by carnivorous mammals. Finally, Conepatus specimens were also identified in other sites of the Pampean region. In these cases, detailed analyses of tooth marks could be evidence of human consumption of this as well as other small species, when other evidence is absent.