Zoological Institute RAS, 1 Universitetskaya emb.,Saint Petersburg, 199034, Russia [g_baryshnikov@mail.ru]

 

Abstract. The analysis of bone assemblage from the upper layers 1–2 (Holocene) and 3–4 (Late Pleistocene, MIS3) of the archаeological site in the Tsagaan-Agui Сave situated in the upper zone of Gobi Altai revealed the presence of 15 species of large mammals. Most of them still occur in the southern parts of Mongolia, excepting the extinct woolly rhino (Coelodonta antiquitatis) and cave hyena (Crocuta spelaea), as well as orongo (Pantholops hodgsonii), whose distribution range does not extend now beyond the limits of the Tibetan Plateau. The number of species of predatory animals as well as the number of their bone remains is rather small, which suggests that bone material in the Paleolithic layers accumulated mainly as a result of hunting by ancient humans. The bulk of the prey was presumably mountain ungulates (argali, Siberian goat, kulan). The presence of cave hyena and traces of its activity allow suggestion that

the cave was a hyena den for some time. The Tsagaan-Agui Сave could have been used as a hunting camp and provides evidence of the settlement of Paleolithic man in Central Asia during periods of climate humidification.

 

Keywords: fauna, large mammals, Mongolia, Late Pleistocene, Holocene, Paleolithic.

 

Received 06.10.2025, accepted 01.11.2025

DOI: 10.31600/2658-3925-2025-2-33-59

For citation: Baryshnikov G. F. Large mammal fauna of the Tsagaan-Agui Сave site, Mongolia (excavation 1996) (in Russ.). Prehistoric Archaeology. Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies. 2025 (2), 33–59. DOI: 10.31600/2658-3925-2025-2-33-59

 

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