Arroyo del Vizcaíno, Uruguay: a fossil-rich 30-ka-old megafaunal locality with cut-marked bones

Human–megafauna interaction in the Americas has great scientific and ethical
interest because of its implications on Pleistocene extinction. The Arroyo
del Vizcaı´no site near Sauce, Uruguay has already yielded over 1000 bones
belonging to at least 27 individuals, mostly of the giant sloth Lestodon. The
assemblage shows some taphonomic features suggestive of human presence,
such as a mortality profile dominated by prime adults and little evidence of
major fluvial transport. In addition, several bones present deep, asymmetrical,
microstriated, sharp and shouldered marks similar to those produced by
human stone tools. A few possible lithic elements have also been collected,
one of which has the shape of a scraper and micropolish consistent with
usage on dry hide. However, the radiocarbon age of the site is unexpectedly
old (between 27 and 30 thousand years ago), and thus may be important for
understanding the timing of the peopling of America.

Farin˜a RA, Tambusso PS, Varela
L, Czerwonogora A, Di Giacomo M, Musso M
Bracco R, Gascue A. 2014 Arroyo del Vizcaı´no,
Uruguay: a fossil-rich 30-ka-old megafaunal
locality with cut-marked bones. Proc. R. Soc. B
281: 20132211.

http://rspb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/281/1774/20132211.full.pdf+html
http://rspb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/suppl/2013/11/15/rspb.2013.2211.DC1.html