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Birds and Quaternary climate changes: avifaunal shifts in Vela Luka Bay (Korčula) as revealed by the remains from Vela spila cave

Paleontological and archaeological site Vela spila cave is situated on a hill just above the Vela Luka town, on the western part of Korčula island. Vela Luka bay was formed when the sea inundated the valley in the foothills during the Holocene transgression. This site is excellent for observing faunal changes as it has almost continuous stratigraphy from the Late Pleistocene to Holocene. The cave is a well explored archaeological locality, with cultural remains that span from the Late Upper Palaeolithic, Mesolithic, Early, Middle and Late Neolithic, Eneolithic and Bronze age (Radić and Miracle, in press) We have taxonomically and taphonomically examined avifaunal remains from the Late Pleistocene to the Early Holocene deposits, excavated during a fieldwork campaigns in 2004 and 2006. The aim was to see whether there will be an expected change in the composition of the avifaunal community following climate and sea level changes. Chronostratigraphical framework is based on published absolute dates (14C) that are complemented with relative archaeological (cultural) dating. We have found that the Late Pleistocene avifauna of Vela spila contained Arctic faunal elements, but the majority of the taxa can be found on the eastern Adriatic coast today, and are common in temperate climate. The Black grouse (Lyrurus tetrix), a continental species adapted to relatively colder climate and not part of the extant avifauna of the Southern Adriatic, was found in deposits dated to Late Glacial Maximum and Older Dryas. The Snowy owl (Bubo scandiacus), an arctic species, is discovered in deposits which are also dated to Older Dryas stadial. The rock partridge (Alectoris graeca), a Mediterranean species, is identified in upper (younger) horizons, dated to Bølling/Allerød interstadial, and in the Holocene as well. Early Holocene avifauna consisted of extant bird taxa of the eastern Adriatic coast, but with some differences in composition which can be explained with selective accumulation. These results improve our understanding on distribution and behaviour of avian species during the Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene on the Adriatic coast, and pave the way for the future, more elaborate, biodiversity studies.

birds, climate change, Late Pleistocene, Early Holocene, Vela Spila cave, Korčula, Croatia

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