Late Quaternary climatic and environmental conditions of northern Spain: An isotopic approach based on the mammalian record from La Paloma cave

La Paloma cave (Asturias, northern Spain) stands out as one of the most notable prehistoric sites of the northern Iberian sector due to the richness of its archaeo-paleontological material, spanning a complete Magdalenian-Azilian sequence (similar to 20,300-12,900 cal years BP). The abundance, diversity and good preservation of mammalian remains make of La Paloma site an excellent location to characterize paleoclimatic, paleoecological and paleoenvironmental conditions from a biogeochemical standpoint. Stable isotope analyses performed on tooth enamel (delta(13)Cem delta O-18(co3). delta O-18(po4)) and bone collagen (delta C-13(coll), delta N-15) of a suite of herbivore, carnivore and omnivore species did not yield significant variations across the stratigraphic sequence, likely pointing to prevalent and stable local conditions, with i) no major vegetation turnover, ii) maintenance of hydrological conditions, and iii) relatively constant soil activity, in spite of the synchrony of the La Paloma temporal context with global events, such as the end of the Last Glacial Maximum, the Heinrich Event 1 and the Bolling-Allerod oscillation. La Paloma. 5-13Cen and delta C-13(coll) values are within the expected range for C-3 mixed woodland-mesic C-3 grassland conditions. Overall, bovids (large Bovidae, ibex and chamois) show higher delta C-13(en), delta C-13(coll) and delta N-15 values than cervids (red deer and roe deer), indicating a preference for more open environments in the former. Horse delta C-13 values are undistinguishable from those of red deer and point to a mixed-feeding behavior. Horse low delta N-15 values may be indicative of a diet with a low protein content. Bayesian mixing model results yielded differences in carnivore resource use, with wolf preying on all ungulates and red fox preferentially incorporating roe deer. Stable paleoenviromental conditions during the latest Pleistocene at the La Paloma area may have favored the persistence of a stable mammalian community structure, supporting the idea of the existence of refuge areas in the northern Iberian sector throughout the late Quaternary glacial-interglacial dynamics. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.