Tegenu Gossa

In 2017, a hemimandible (MW5-B208), corresponding to the Ethiopian wolf (Canis simensis), was found in a stratigraphically-controlled and radio-isotopically-dated sequence of the Melka Wakena paleoanthropological site-complex, on the Southeastern Ethiopian Highlands, ~ 2300 m above sea level. The specimen is the first and unique Pleistocene fossil of this species. Our data provide an unambiguous minimum age of 1.6–1.4 Ma for the species’ presence in Africa and constitutes the first empirical evidence that supports molecular interpretations. Currently, C. simensis is one of the most endangered carnivore species of Africa. Bioclimate niche modeling applied to the time frame indicated by the fossil suggests that the lineage of the Ethiopian wolf faced severe survival challenges in the past, with consecutive drastic geographic range contractions during warmer periods. These models help to describe future scenarios for the survival of the species. Projections ranging from most pessimisti...

Recent research has made great strides clarifying the chronology, temporal span, and geographic and technological patterning of the Acheulian in eastern Africa. However, highland occurrences of the Acheulian remain under-represented and their relationship to cultural dynamics in the Rift are still poorly understood. Recently, a stratified sequence of four archaeological layers, recording Acheulian occupations dated between ~1.6 Ma and ~1.3 Ma, has been discovered in locality MW2 of the Melka Wakena site-complex (south-central Ethiopian highlands). This database enabled a systematic exploration of the question of tempo and mode of technological changes at a local sequence, allowing, for the first time, comparison with other highland sites as well as in the Rift. The detailed techno-economic study presented in this study shows that the early Acheulian at the locality was characterized by the co-existence of lithic reduction sequences for small debitage and for flake-based Large Cuttin...

Abstract Current models of early hominin biological and cultural evolution are shaped almost entirely by the data accumulated from the East African Rift System (EARS) over the last decades. In contrast, little is known about the archaeological record from the high-elevation regions on either side of the Rift. Melka Wakena is a newly discovered site-complex on the Southeastern Ethiopian Highlands (SEH) (>2300 m above mean sea level) just east of the central sector of the Main Ethiopian Rift (MER), where eight archaeological and two paleontological localities were discovered to date. Nine archaeological horizons from three localities were tested so far, all dated to the second half of the early Pleistocene (∼1.6 to >0.7 Ma). All the lithic assemblages belong to the Acheulian technocomplex. Here we report on geochronological, stratigraphic, paleontological and lithic technological aspects of the tested localities and contextualize them in the broader framework of hominin cultural evolution in eastern Africa. Findings from Melka Wakena, assessed against the backdrop of the few other highland sites (Melka Kunture and Gadeb), support a scenario of expansion rather than dispersal from the Rift to the highlands. When considered in the context of the Rift-highlands interface, results of the first-phase research at Melka Wakena help to parse existing general models into archaeologically testable hypotheses and demonstrate the site’s potential to contribute to research of early prehistory and to understanding the dynamics of early Pleistocene hominin populations in eastern Africa.

ABSTRACT The site of Aladi Springs was discovered and excavated in the 1970s. However, the assemblages from this site did not subsequently receive full investigation. Here, we present results of the first exhaustive analysis of the lithic collections from both the Middle and the Later Stone Age (MSA/LSA) occupation horizons at this site. Detailed analysis of metric and non-metric attributes reveals a marked variability in production techniques and overall size of major tool classes, with dimensional diminution evident across these occupations. However, tool utilisation patterns exhibit an overall similarity where marginally retouched tools and inverse retouch techniques appear to be the characteristic features of both industries. Whereas the presence in the MSA occupation of tool forms with LSA affinities suggests that the site may actually represent a transitional context, additional excavations and/or detailed microstratigraphic studies are needed in order to establish unequivocally the actual cultural trajectories at Aladi Springs.

The site of Aladi Springs was discovered and excavated in the 1970s. However, the assemblages from this site did not subsequently receive full investigation. Here, we present results of the first exhaustive analysis of the lithic collections from both the Middle and the Later Stone Age (MSA/LSA) occupation horizons at this site. Detailed analysis of metric and non-metric attributes reveals a marked variability in production techniques and overall size of major tool classes, with dimensional diminution evident across these occupations. However, tool utilisation patterns exhibit an overall similarity where marginally retouched tools and inverse retouch techniques appear to be the characteristic features of both industries. Whereas the presence in the MSA occupation of tool forms with LSA affinities suggests that the site may actually represent a transitional context, additional excavations and/or detailed microstratigraphic studies are needed in order to establish unequivocally the actual cultural trajectories at Aladi Springs.Le site d'Aladi Springs a été découvert et fouillé dans les années 1970. Cependant, les artefacts issus du site ne firent pas par la suite l'objet d'une analyse complète. Nous présentons ici les résultats de la première analyse exhaustive des collections lithiques des horizons d'occupation du Middle et du Later Stone Age (MSA/LSA) de ce site. L'analyse détaillée des attributs métriques et non-métriques révèle une variabilité marquée dans les techniques de production et dans la taille d'ensemble des classes d'outils majeures, avec une nette diminution dans les dimensions sur la durée des occupations. Cependant, les modes d'utilisation des outils semblent globalement similaires, les outils maginalement retouchés et les techniques de retouche inversée paraissant caractériser les deux industries. Si la présence dans les niveaux MSA de formes ayant des affinités LSA suggère que le site représente peut-être un contexte transitionnel, des fouilles supplémentaires et/ou des analyses microstratigraphiques détaillées seront nécessaires avant de pouvoir établir sans équivoque les véritables trajectoires culturelles à Aladi Springs.