BATS AS AN INDICATOR OF HUMAN ACTIVITY IN THE PALEOLITHIC, USING THE EXAMPLE OF DENISOVA CAVE, NORTHWESTERN ALTAI

Abstract

Landscape and climatic changes in northwestern Altai at the end of the Middle Pleistocene were accompanied by a transformation in the taxonomic composition of the bat community and abundance of some species. The dynamics of the bat community is very important for the study of the activity of Paleolithic man. The high sensitivity of bats to human disturbance allowed the time of colonization and nature of usage of Denisova cave by humans to be recognized. In this respect, bats are a very important indicator of events in the surrounding ecosystem. © Pleiades Publishing, Inc. 2006.