Le cerf de l'Igue du Gral

The red deer from the Igue du Gral.- The red deer (Cervus elaphus) is one of the emblematic species of the Igue du Gral. Although it is not represented by several thousand remains like some other species, its presence on the surface of the main chamber in the form of large and complete bones (along with bison bones) prompted the investigators to stop excavating. Its leading role in the uppermost paleontological complex, 12,000 years ago (in calibrated dates), constitutes an exceptional source of information. Although of remarkable dimensions, these bones can be attributed to Cervus elaphus. This species is also present more or less sporadically in the rest of the sequence. Given the uncertainty about the presence or absence of red deer during the Final Pleistocene, an important part of this study concerns the chronological and stratigraphic delineation of the episodes of deer falls in the cave. The upper assemblage allowed the characterisation of a population of half a dozen individuals based on the presence of different parts of the skeleton, the morphological characterisation of these individuals, and to a lesser extent, the ages of the individuals. The deer from the whole sequence are compared to those found regionally and beyond.