The Older Dryas was a

stadial Stadials and interstadials are phases dividing the Quaternary period, or the last 2.6 million years. Stadials are periods of colder climate, and interstadials are periods of warmer climate. Each Quaternary climate phase has been assigned with a ...

(cold) period between the Bølling and Allerød

interstadial Stadials and interstadials are phases dividing the Quaternary period, or the last 2.6 million years. Stadials are periods of colder climate, and interstadials are periods of warmer climate. Each Quaternary climate phase has been assigned with a ...

s (warmer phases), about 14,000 years

Before Present Before Present (BP) or "years before present (YBP)" is a time scale used mainly in archaeology, geology, and other scientific disciplines to specify when events occurred relative to the origin of practical radiocarbon dating in the 1950s. Because ...

, towards the end of the

Pleistocene The Pleistocene ( ; referred to colloquially as the ''ice age, Ice Age'') is the geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fin ...

. Its date range is not well defined, with estimates varying by 400 years, but its duration is agreed to have been around two centuries. The gradual warming since the

Last Glacial Maximum The Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), also referred to as the Last Glacial Coldest Period, was the most recent time during the Last Glacial Period where ice sheets were at their greatest extent between 26,000 and 20,000 years ago. Ice sheets covered m ...

(27,000 to 24,000 years BP) has been interrupted by two cold spells: the Older Dryas and the

Younger Dryas The Younger Dryas (YD, Greenland Stadial GS-1) was a period in Earth's geologic history that occurred circa 12,900 to 11,700 years Before Present (BP). It is primarily known for the sudden or "abrupt" cooling in the Northern Hemisphere, when the ...

(c. 12,900–11,650 BP). In northern

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

, the glaciers were thicker and deeper during the Older Dryas than the succeeding Younger Dryas, and there is no evidence of human occupation of

Britain Britain most often refers to: * Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales * The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...

. In

Northwestern Europe Northwestern Europe, or Northwest Europe, is a loosely defined subregion of Europe, overlapping Northern and Western Europe. The term is used in geographic, history, and military contexts. Geographic definitions Geographically, Northwestern ...

there was also an earlier

Oldest Dryas The Oldest Dryas is a biostratigraphic subdivision layer corresponding to a relatively abrupt climatic cooling event, or stadial, which occurred during the last glacial retreat. The time period to which the layer corresponds is poorly defined a ...

(18.5–17 ka BP 15–14 ka BP). The Dryas are named after an indicator genus, the Arctic and Alpine plant ''

Dryas octopetala ''Dryas octopetala'', the mountain avens, eightpetal mountain-avens, white dryas or white dryad, is an Arctic–alpine flowering plant in the family Rosaceae. It is a small prostrate evergreen subshrub forming large colonies. The specific epithe ...

'', the remains of which are found in higher concentrations in deposits from colder periods. The Older Dryas was a variable cold, dry Blytt–Sernander period, observed in climatological evidence in only some regions, dependent on latitude. In regions in which it is not observed, the Bølling–Allerød is considered a single interstadial period. Evidence of the Older Dryas is strongest in northern Eurasia, particularly part of Northern

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

, roughly equivalent to

Pollen zone Pollen zones are a system of subdividing the Last Glacial Period and Holocene paleoclimate using the data from pollen cores. The sequence provides a global chronological structure to a wide variety of researchers, such as geologists, climatologi ...

Ic.

Dates

In the

Greenland Greenland is an autonomous territory in the Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark. It is by far the largest geographically of three constituent parts of the kingdom; the other two are metropolitan Denmark and the Faroe Islands. Citizens of Greenlan ...

oxygen isotope record, the Older Dryas appears as a downward peak establishing a small, low-intensity gap between the Bølling and the Allerød. That configuration presents a difficulty in estimating its time, as it is more of a point than a segment. The segment is small enough to escape the resolution of most carbon-14 series, as the points are not close enough together to find the segment. One approach to the problem assigns a point and then picks an arbitrary segment. The Older Dryas is sometimes considered to be "centered" near 14,100 BP or to be 100 to 150 years long "at" 14,250 BP. A second approach finds carbon-14 or other dates as close to the end of the Bølling and the beginning of the Allerød as possible and then selects endpoints that are based on them: for example, 14,000–13,700 BP. The best approach attempts to include the Older Dryas in a sequence of points as close together as possible (high resolution) or within a known event. For example, pollen from the island of

Hokkaidō is the second-largest island of Japan and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by railway via the Seikan Tunnel. The ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

, records a

larch Larches are deciduous conifers in the genus ''Larix'', of the family Pinaceae (subfamily Laricoideae). Growing from tall, they are native to the cooler regions of the northern hemisphere, where they are found in lowland forests in the high la ...

pollen peak and matching

sphagnum ''Sphagnum'' is a genus of approximately 380 accepted species of mosses, commonly known as sphagnum moss, also bog moss and quacker moss (although that term is also sometimes used for peat). Accumulations of ''Sphagnum'' can store water, since ...

decline at 14,600–13700 BP. In the

White Sea The White Sea (; Karelian language, Karelian and ; ) is a southern inlet of the Barents Sea located on the northwest coast of Russia. It is surrounded by Karelia to the west, the Kola Peninsula to the north, and the Kanin Peninsula to the nort ...

, a cooling occurred at 14,700–13,400/13,000, which resulted in a re-advance of the glacier in the initial Allerød. In

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

, the Shulie Lake phase, a re-advance, is dated to 14,000–13,500 BP. On the other hand,

varve A varve is an annual layer of sediment or sedimentary rock. The word 'varve' derives from the Swedish word ''varv'' whose meanings and connotations include 'revolution', 'in layers', and 'circle'. Of the many rhythmites in the geological record ...

chronology in southern

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

indicates a range of 14,050–13,900 BP.

Description

Northern Europe The northern region of Europe has several definitions. A restrictive definition may describe northern Europe as being roughly north of the southern coast of the Baltic Sea, which is about 54th parallel north, 54°N, or may be based on other ge ...

offered an alternation of

steppe In physical geography, a steppe () is an ecoregion characterized by grassland plains without closed forests except near rivers and lakes. Steppe biomes may include: * the montane grasslands and shrublands biome * the tropical and subtropica ...

and

tundra In physical geography, a tundra () is a type of biome where tree growth is hindered by frigid temperatures and short growing seasons. There are three regions and associated types of tundra: #Arctic, Arctic, Alpine tundra, Alpine, and #Antarctic ...

environments depending on the

permafrost Permafrost () is soil or underwater sediment which continuously remains below for two years or more; the oldest permafrost has been continuously frozen for around 700,000 years. Whilst the shallowest permafrost has a vertical extent of below ...

line and the

latitude In geography, latitude is a geographic coordinate system, geographic coordinate that specifies the north-south position of a point on the surface of the Earth or another celestial body. Latitude is given as an angle that ranges from −90° at t ...

. In moister regions, around lakes and streams, were thickets of

dwarf birch ''Betula nana'', the dwarf birch, is a species of birch in the family Betulaceae, found mainly in the tundra of the Arctic region. Description It is a monoecious, deciduous shrub growing up to high. The bark is non-peeling and shiny red-copper ...

willow Willows, also called sallows and osiers, of the genus ''Salix'', comprise around 350 species (plus numerous hybrids) of typically deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist soils in cold and temperate regions. Most species are known ...

sea buckthorn ''Hippophae'', from Ancient Greek ἵππος (''híppos''), meaning "horse", and φάος (''pháos''), meaning "light", is a genus of flowering plants in the family Elaeagnaceae. They are deciduous shrubs. They are exceptionally hardy plants, ...

, and

juniper Junipers are coniferous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Juniperus'' ( ) of the cypress family Cupressaceae. Depending on the taxonomy, between 50 and 67 species of junipers are widely distributed throughout the Northern Hemisphere as far south ...

. In the river valleys and uplands, to the south, were open

birch A birch is a thin-leaved deciduous hardwood tree of the genus ''Betula'' (), in the family Betulaceae, which also includes alders, hazels, and hornbeams. It is closely related to the beech- oak family Fagaceae. The genus ''Betula'' contains 3 ...

forests. The first trees, birch and

pine A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. ''World Flora Online'' accepts 134 species-rank taxa (119 species and 15 nothospecies) of pines as cu ...

, had spread into Northern Europe 500 years earlier. During the Older Dryas, the glacier re-advanced, and the trees retreated southward, to be replaced by a mixture of grassland and cool-weather alpine species. The

biome A biome () is a distinct geographical region with specific climate, vegetation, and animal life. It consists of a biological community that has formed in response to its physical environment and regional climate. In 1935, Tansley added the ...

has been called "

Park Tundra Park tundra was a plant community that occurred in northwestern Europe after the last ice age ended. History The community was similar to that found today at the boundary between tundra and taiga in Siberia: species included the dwarf birch and ...

," "Arctic tundra," "Arctic pioneer vegetation," or “birch woodlands." It is now in the transition between

taiga Taiga or tayga ( ; , ), also known as boreal forest or snow forest, is a biome characterized by coniferous forests consisting mostly of pines, spruces, and larches. The taiga, or boreal forest, is the world's largest land biome. In North A ...

and

Siberia Siberia ( ; , ) is an extensive geographical region comprising all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has formed a part of the sovereign territory of Russia and its predecessor states ...

. Then, it stretched from Siberia to

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

, in a more-or-less unbroken expanse. To the northwest was the

Baltic ice lake The Baltic Ice Lake is a name given by geologists to a freshwater lake that evolved in the Baltic Sea basin as glaciers retreated from that region at the end of the last ice age. The lake's existence was first understood in 1894. The lake existe ...

, which was truncated by the edge of the glacier. Species had access to

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

and southern Sweden. Most of

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

and the

Baltic countries The Baltic states or the Baltic countries is a geopolitical term encompassing Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. All three countries are members of NATO, the European Union, the Eurozone, and the OECD. The three sovereign states on the eastern co ...

were under the ice or the lake for most of the period. Northern

Scandinavia Scandinavia is a subregion#Europe, subregion of northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. It can sometimes also ...

was glaciated. Between Britain and

Continental Europe Continental Europe or mainland Europe is the contiguous mainland of Europe, excluding its surrounding islands. It can also be referred to ambiguously as the European continent, – which can conversely mean the whole of Europe – and, by som ...

were rolling hills prolifically populated with animals. Thousands of specimens, hundreds of tons of bones, have been recovered from the bottom of the

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. A sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Se ...

, called "

Doggerland Doggerland was a large area of land in Northern Europe, now submerged beneath the southern North Sea. This region was repeatedly exposed at various times during the Pleistocene epoch due to the lowering of sea levels during glacial periods. Howe ...

," and they continue to be recovered. There are many more species found for the period than in this article. Most families were more diverse than they are today, and they were yet more so in the last interglacial. A great

extinction Extinction is the termination of an organism by the death of its Endling, last member. A taxon may become Functional extinction, functionally extinct before the death of its last member if it loses the capacity to Reproduction, reproduce and ...

, especially of mammals, continued throughout the end of the

, and it may be continuing today.

Evidence

The Older Dryas is a period of cooling during the Bølling–Allerød warming, estimated to be from 13,900 to 13,600 years before present (BP), and the estimated ages can vary using different age dating methods. Numerous studies on chronology and palaeoclimate of last deglaciation show a cooling event within Bølling–Allerød warming that reflects the occurrence of Older Dryas. The determination of paleotemperatures varies from study to study depending on the sample collected. δ¹⁸O measurements are most common when analyzing Ice core samples whereas the changing abundance pattern of fauna and flora are most commonly used when examining lake sediments. Moraine belts are usually studied in places with palaeoglacier presented. As for ocean sediments, the variations of alkenone levels and faunal abundances were measured to model paleotemperatures in separate studies shown in the following sections.

Ice core δ¹⁸O evidence

The North

Greenland Ice Core Project The Greenland Ice Core Project (GRIP) was a research project organized through the European Science Foundation (ESF). The project ran from 1989 to 1995, with drilling seasons from 1990 to 1992. In 1988, the project was accepted as an ESF-associat ...

(GRIP) members drilled an undisturbed ice core from North Greenland (75.1 8N, 42.3 8W). The ice core record showed a cold oscillation between 14,025 to13,904 years BP, which is reflected in the increased δ¹⁸O during this period. This cold oscillation was also observed in earlier ice core records (GRIP and GISP2) drilled in the early 1990s by GRIP members.

Lake sediment evidence

A multi-proxy study on late glacial lake sediments of Moervaart palaeolake shows multiple pieces of evidence in various aspects to support Older Dryas. The lake sediment had an erosional surface prior to Older Dryas suggesting a change to colder climate. Microstructure observation of the sediments shows that fossil soil wedges or frost cracks were observed in the top of Older Dryas deposits, which indicates mean annual air temperatures below −1 to 0 °C and cold winters. This conclusion is also supported by the presence of ''

Juniper Junipers are coniferous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Juniperus'' ( ) of the cypress family Cupressaceae. Depending on the taxonomy, between 50 and 67 species of junipers are widely distributed throughout the Northern Hemisphere as far south ...

us'', which indicates a protecting snow cover in winter. This change is also shown on the records at the Rieme sites on the Great SandRidge of Maldegem-Stekene at Snellegem in NW Belgium, and many other sites in north-western Europe. δ¹⁸O measurements show a decreasing trend in δ¹⁸O at the transition to the Older Dryas, which corresponds to the ice core record of precipitation in the northern hemisphere. Pollen analysis shows a temporary decrease in the pollen levels of trees and shrubs with a short-term increase in herbaceous pollen. The changed pollen pattern suggests an increased abundance of grass as well as a retreat of tree and shrubs. The change in vegetation distribution further indicates a colder and drier climate during this period. As for aquatic plant evidence, both aquatic and semi-aquatic botanical taxa show a sharp decrease, suggesting lower lake levels caused by a drier climate. The drier climate is also reflected by increased salinity indicated by diatom analysis. The change in Chironomids population also indicates a colder climate. ''Microtendipes'' is an indicator of intermediate temperature in Late glacial deposits in northern Europe (Brooks and Birks, 2001). The abundance of ''Microtendipes'' peaked in the early part of Older Dryas suggesting a cold oscillation. The mollusc data (''

Valvata piscinalis ''Valvata piscinalis'', common name the European stream valvata or European valve snail, is a species of small freshwater snail with gills and an operculum, an aquatic gastropod mollusk in the family Valvatidae, the valve snails. It is also kn ...

'' as a cold-water indicator) suggests a lower summer temperature compared to previous Bølling period.

Ocean sediment evidence

Recent research on

sea surface temperature Sea surface temperature (or ocean surface temperature) is the ocean temperature, temperature of ocean water close to the surface. The exact meaning of ''surface'' varies in the literature and in practice. It is usually between and below the sea ...

(SST) for the past 15,000 years in southern Okinawa modelled the Paleoclimate of ocean sediment core (ODP 1202B) using an alkenone analysis. The results show a cooling stage at 14,300 to 13,700 years BP between Bølling and Allerød warm phases, corresponding to the Older Dryas event. Another study on an ocean sediment core from the Norwegian Trench also suggests a cooling between Bølling and Allerød warm phases. The glacial polar faunal study on ocean sediment core Troll 3.1 based on ''Neogloboquadrina pachyderma'' abundances suggests that there were two cooling events before Younger Dryas in which one of the events occurred within Bølling-Allerød interstadial and can be associated with Older Dryas.

Moraine evidence

The study on late-glacial climate change in the White Mountains (New Hampshire, USA) refined the deglaciation history of the White Mountain Moraine System (WMMS) by mapping moraine belts and related lake sequences. The result suggests that the Littleton-Bethlehem (L-B) readvance of the ice sheet occurred between 14,000 and 13,800 years BP. The L-B readvance coincided with the Older Dryas events and provides the first well-documented and dated evidence of Older Dryas. Another Glacial chronology and palaeoclimate study on moraine suggests a cold oscillation in the second late-glacial (LG2) following the first late-glacial readvance (LG1) at around 14,000±700 to 13,700±1200 years BP. The LG2 cold oscillation around 14,000 years BP can correspond to the cooling of Greenland Interstadial 1 (GI-1d-Older Dryas) that happened around the same time period, which is the first chronological evidence that supports the presence of Older Dryas in the Tatra Mountains.

Flora

Older Dryas species are usually found in the sediment below the bottom layer of the bog. Indicator species are the Alpine plants: :*''

Betula pubescens ''Betula pubescens'' (syn. ''Betula alba''), commonly known as downy birch and also as moor birch, white birch, European white birch or hairy birch, is a species of deciduous tree, native and abundant throughout northern Europe and northern Asia ...

'' or downy birch (Central Europe); :*''

Pinaceae The Pinaceae (), or pine family, are conifer trees or shrubs, including many of the well-known conifers of commercial importance such as Cedrus, cedars, firs, Tsuga, hemlocks, Pinyon_pine, piñons, larches, pines and spruces. The family is incl ...

'' or pine family (Poland); :*''

'', or dryas; :*''

Salix herbacea ''Salix herbacea'', the dwarf willow, least willow or snowbed willow, is a species of tiny creeping willow (family Salicaceae) adapted to survive in harsh arctic and subarctic environments. Distributed widely in alpine and arctic environments ar ...

'', or dwarf willow; :*''

Oxyria digyna ''Oxyria digyna'' (mountain sorrel, wood sorrel, Alpine sorrel or Alpine mountain-sorrel) is a species of flowering plant in the buckwheat family (Polygonaceae).Sierra Nevada Wildflowers, Karen Wiese, 2nd ed., 2013, p. 108 It is native to arctic ...

'', or mountain sorrel. Grasslands species are the following: :*'' Artemisia'', sagebrush or wormwood; :*'' Ephedra'', or joint-fir. :*''

Hippophae ''Hippophae'', from Ancient Greek ἵππος (''híppos''), meaning "horse", and φάος (''pháos''), meaning "light", is a genus of flowering plants in the family Elaeagnaceae. They are deciduous shrubs. They are exceptionally hardy plants, ...

Fauna

A well-stocked biozone prevailed on the Arctic plains and thickets of the Late Pleistocene. Plains mammals were most predominant:

Artiodactyls Artiodactyls are placental mammals belonging to the order Artiodactyla ( , ). Typically, they are ungulates which bear weight equally on two (an even number) of their five toes (the third and fourth, often in the form of a hoof). The other thre ...

: :*'' Bison priscus'', the steppe wisent or steppe bison :*''

Rangifer tarandus The reindeer or caribou (''Rangifer tarandus'') is a species of deer with circumpolar distribution, native to Arctic, subarctic, tundra, boreal, and mountainous regions of Northern Europe, Siberia, and North America. It is the only represent ...

'', the reindeer or caribou :*''

Megaloceros giganteus The Irish elk (''Megaloceros giganteus''), also called the giant deer or Irish deer, is an extinct species of deer in the genus ''Megaloceros'' and is one of the largest deer that ever lived. Its range extended across northern Eurasia during the ...

'', the Irish elk :*''

Alces alces The moose (: 'moose'; used in North America) or elk (: 'elk' or 'elks'; used in Eurasia) (''Alces alces'') is the world's tallest, Largest cervids, largest and heaviest extant taxon, extant species of deer and the monotypic taxon, only specie ...

'', the elk :*''

Cervus elaphus The red deer (''Cervus elaphus'') is one of the largest deer species. A male red deer is called a stag or Hart (deer), hart, and a female is called a doe or hind. The red deer inhabits most of Europe, the Caucasus Mountains region, Anatolia, Ir ...

'', the red deer :*'' Ovibos moschatus'', the musk ox :*''

Saiga tatarica The saiga antelope (, ''Saiga tatarica''), or saiga, is a species of antelope which during antiquity inhabited a vast area of the Eurasian steppe, spanning the foothills of the Carpathian Mountains in the northwest and Caucasus in the southwes ...

'', the saiga Perissodactyls: :*''

Equus ferus The wild horse (''Equus ferus'') is a species of the genus ''Equus'', which includes as subspecies the modern domesticated horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') as well as the endangered Przewalski's horse (''Equus ferus przewalskii'', sometimes tr ...

'', the wild horse. Many authors refer to it as ''Equus caballus'', but the latter term is most correctly reserved for the domestic horse. Ferus is presumed to be one or more ancestral or related stocks to caballus and has been described as "caballine". :*''

Coelodonta antiquitatis ''Coelodonta'' (, from the Ancient Greek κοῖλος (''koîlos''), meaning "hollow", and οδούς (''odoús''), meaning "tooth", in reference to the deep grooves of their molars) is an extinct genus of Eurasian rhinoceroses that lived from ...

'', woolly rhinoceros

Proboscidea Proboscidea (; , ) is a taxonomic order of afrotherian mammals containing one living family (Elephantidae) and several extinct families. First described by J. Illiger in 1811, it encompasses the elephants and their close relatives. Three l ...

: :*''

Mammuthus primigenius The woolly mammoth (''Mammuthus primigenius'') is an extinct species of mammoth that lived from the Middle Pleistocene until its extinction in the Holocene epoch. It was one of the last in a line of mammoth species, beginning with the African ...

'', the woolly mammoth So much meat on the hoof must have supported large numbers of

Carnivora Carnivora ( ) is an order of placental mammals specialized primarily in eating flesh, whose members are formally referred to as carnivorans. The order Carnivora is the sixth largest order of mammals, comprising at least 279 species. Carnivor ...

Ursidae Bears are carnivoran mammals of the family (biology), family Ursidae (). They are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans. Although only eight species of bears are extant, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats ...

: :*''

Ursus arctos The brown bear (''Ursus arctos'') is a large bear native to Eurasia and North America. Of the land carnivorans, it is rivaled in size only by its closest relative, the polar bear, which is much less variable in size and slightly bigger on av ...

'', the brown bear :*'' Ursus spelaeus'', the cave bear Hyaenidae: :*''

Crocuta crocuta The spotted hyena (''Crocuta crocuta''), also known as the laughing hyena, is a hyena species, currently classed as the sole extant member of the genus ''Crocuta'', native to sub-Saharan Africa. It is listed as being of least concern by the IUC ...

'', the spotted hyena

Felidae Felidae ( ) is the Family (biology), family of mammals in the Order (biology), order Carnivora colloquially referred to as cats. A member of this family is also called a felid ( ). The 41 extant taxon, extant Felidae species exhibit the gre ...

: :*''

Panthera spelaea ''Panthera spelaea'', commonly known as the cave lion (or less commonly as the steppe lion), is an extinct ''Panthera'' species that was native to Eurasia and northwest North America during the Pleistocene epoch. Genetic analysis of ancient DNA ...

'', the cave lion

Canidae Canidae (; from Latin, ''canis'', "dog") is a family (biology), biological family of caniform carnivorans, constituting a clade. A member of this family is also called a canid (). The family includes three subfamily, subfamilies: the Caninae, a ...

: :*''

Canis lupus The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the grey wolf or gray wolf, is a canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, including the dog and dingo, though gr ...

'', the wolf :*''

Alopex lagopus The Arctic fox (''Vulpes lagopus''), also known as the white fox, polar fox, or snow fox, is a small species of fox native to the Arctic regions of the Northern Hemisphere and common throughout the Arctic tundra biome. It is well adapted to ...

'', the Arctic fox

Mustelidae The Mustelidae (; from Latin , weasel) are a diverse family of carnivora, carnivoran mammals, including weasels, badgers, otters, polecats, martens, grisons, and wolverines. Otherwise known as mustelids (), they form the largest family in the s ...

: :*''

Gulo gulo The wolverine ( , ; ''Gulo gulo''), also called the carcajou or quickhatch (from East Cree, ''kwiihkwahaacheew''), is the largest land-dwelling species, member of the family Mustelidae. It is a muscular carnivore and a solitary animal. The w ...

'', the wolverine The sea also had its share of carnivores; their maritime location made them survive until modern times: Phocidae: :*'' Pagophilus groenlandica'', the harp seal :*'' Pusa hispida'', the ringed seal

Odobenidae Odobenidae is a family of pinnipeds, of which the only extant species is the walrus (''Odobenus rosmarus''). In the past, however, the group was much more diverse, and includes more than a dozen fossil genera. Taxonomy All genera, except '' Od ...

: :*'' Odobenus rosmarus'', the walrus Of the

Cetacea Cetacea (; , ) is an infraorder of aquatic mammals belonging to the order Artiodactyla that includes whales, dolphins and porpoises. Key characteristics are their fully aquatic lifestyle, streamlined body shape, often large size and exclusively c ...

Odontoceti The toothed whales (also called odontocetes, systematic name Odontoceti) are a parvorder of cetaceans that includes dolphins, porpoises, and all other whales with teeth, such as beaked whales and the sperm whales. 73 species of toothed whales ar ...

, the

Monodontidae The cetacean family Monodontidae comprises two living whale species, the narwhal and the beluga whale and at least four extinct species, known from the fossil record. Beluga and narwhal are native to coastal regions and pack ice around the Arcti ...

: :*'' Delphinapterus leucas'', the beluga

Delphinidae Oceanic dolphins or Delphinidae are a widely distributed family of dolphins that live in the sea. Close to forty extant species are recognised. They include several big species whose common names contain "whale" rather than "dolphin", such as the ...

: :*''

Orcinus orca The orca (''Orcinus orca''), or killer whale, is a toothed whale and the largest member of the oceanic dolphin family. The only Extant taxon, extant species in the genus ''Orcinus'', it is recognizable by its Countershading, black-and-white- ...

'', the killer whale Of the

Mysticeti Baleen whales (), also known as whalebone whales, are marine mammals of the parvorder Mysticeti in the infraorder Cetacea (whales, dolphins and porpoises), which use baleen plates (or "whalebone") in their mouths to sieve plankton from the wate ...

Eschrichtiidae Eschrichtiidae or the gray whales is a family (taxonomy), family of baleen whale (Parvorder Mysticeti) with a single extant species, the gray whale (''Eschrichtius robustus''), as well as four described fossil genera: ''Archaeschrichtius'' (Mioce ...

: :*'' Eschrictius robustus'', the gray whale The top of the food chain was supported by larger numbers of smaller animals farther down, which lived in the herbaceous blanket covering the tundra or steppe and helped maintain it by carrying seeds, manuring and aerating it.

Leporidae Leporidae () is the family of rabbits and hares, containing over 70 species of extant mammals in all. The family name comes from "Lepus", hare in Latin. Together with the pikas, the Leporidae constitute the mammalian order Lagomorpha. Leporidae ...

: :*'' Lepus tanaiticus'', the hare

Ochotonidae A pika ( , or ) is a small, mountain-dwelling mammal native to Asia and North America. With short limbs, a very round body, an even coat of fur, and no external tail, they resemble their close relative the rabbit, but with short, rounded ears. ...

: :*''

Ochotona spelaeus A pika ( , or ) is a small, mountain-dwelling mammal native to Asia and North America. With short limbs, a very round body, an even coat of fur, and no external tail, they resemble their close relative the rabbit, but with short, rounded ears. ...

'', the pika

Cricetidae The Cricetidae are a family of rodents in the large and complex superfamily Muroidea. It includes true hamsters, voles, lemmings, muskrats, and New World rats and mice. At over 870 species, it is either the largest or second-largest family ...

: :*'' Lemmus obensis'', Siberian lemming :*'' Dicrostonix'', collared lemming :*'' Lagurus lagurus'', steppe lemming :*'' Microtus gregalis'', narrow-headed vole :*''

Arvicola terrestris The European water vole (''Arvicola amphibius'') or northern water vole is a semi-aquatic rodent. It is often informally called the water rat, though it only superficially resembles a true rat. Water voles have rounder noses than rats, deep brow ...

'', water vole

Sciuridae Squirrels are members of the family Sciuridae (), a family that includes small or medium-sized rodents. The squirrel family includes tree squirrels, ground squirrels (including chipmunks and prairie dogs, among others), and flying squirrel ...

: :*''

Spermophilus ''Spermophilus'' is a genus of ground squirrels in the Sciuridae, squirrel family. As traditionally defined the genus was very species-rich, ranging through Europe, Asia and North America, but this arrangement was found to be paraphyletic to ...

'', ground squirrel

Dipodidae Jerboas () are the members of the family Dipodidae. They are hopping desert rodents found throughout North Africa and Asia. They tend to live in hot deserts. When chased, jerboas can run at up to . Some species are preyed on by little owls ('' ...

: :*'' Allactaga jaculus'', the jerboa

Humans

Eurasia was populated by ''

Homo sapiens sapiens Human taxonomy is the classification of the human species within zoological taxonomy. The systematic genus, ''Homo'', is designed to include both anatomically modern humans and extinct varieties of archaic humans. Current humans are classified ...

'' ( Cro-Magnon man) during the late

Upper Paleolithic The Upper Paleolithic (or Upper Palaeolithic) is the third and last subdivision of the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age. Very broadly, it dates to between 50,000 and 12,000 years ago (the beginning of the Holocene), according to some theories ...

. Bands of humans survived by hunting the mammals of the plains. In the

they preferred reindeer, in

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

the

woolly mammoth The woolly mammoth (''Mammuthus primigenius'') is an extinct species of mammoth that lived from the Middle Pleistocene until its extinction in the Holocene epoch. It was one of the last in a line of mammoth species, beginning with the African ...

. They sheltered in huts and manufactured tools around campfires. Ukrainian shelters were supported by mammoth tusks. Humans were already established across

and North America.http://www.palaeolithic.dk/books/JAS_39/excerpt.pdf Eriksen, Berit Valentin; Reconsidering the geochronological framework of Lateglacial hunter-gatherer colonization of southern Scandinavia. Two domestic dogs (''

Canis familiaris The dog (''Canis familiaris'' or ''Canis lupus familiaris'') is a Domestication of vertebrates, domesticated descendant of the gray wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it was Selective breeding, selectively bred from a population of wolves ...

'') have been found in late Pleistocene Ukraine and were a heavy breed, similar to a

Great Dane The Great Dane is a German list of dog breeds, breed of large mastiff-sighthound, which descends from hunting dogs of the Middle Ages used to hunt bears, wild boar, and deer. They were also used as guardian dogs of German nobility. It is one o ...

, perhaps useful to run down

Elephantidae Elephantidae is a family (biology), family of large, herbivorous proboscidean mammals which includes the living Elephant, elephants (belonging to the genera ''Elephas'' and ''Loxodonta''), as well as a number of extinct genera like ''Mammuthus'' ...

. The large number of mammoth bones at campsites make it clear that even then, the Elephantidae in Europe were approaching the limit of their duration. Their bones were used for many purposes, one being the numerous objects of art, including an engraved star map. Late Upper Palaeolithic culture was by no means uniform. Many local traditions have been defined. The Hamburgian culture had occupied the lowlands and Northern Germany before the Older Dryas. During the Older Dryas, contemporaneous with the Havelte Group of the late Hamburgian, the

Federmesser culture ''Federmesser'' group is an archaeological umbrella term including the late Upper Paleolithic to Mesolithic cultures of the Northern European Plain, dating to between 14,000 and 12,800 years ago (the late Magdalenian). It is closely related ...

appeared and occupied Denmark and southern Sweden, following the reindeer. South of the Hamburgian was the longstanding

Magdalenian Magdalenian cultures (also Madelenian; ) are later cultures of the Upper Paleolithic and Mesolithic in western Europe. They date from around 17,000 to 12,000 years before present. It is named after the type site of Abri de la Madeleine, a ro ...

. In Ukraine was the Moldovan, which used tusks to build shelters.

Notes

References

External links

Stone Age
2009-11-01)
Late Glacial Palaeoenvironments at Hijkermeer, DrentheLateglacial hunter-gatherer colonization of southern Scandinavia
{{Ice Ages Chronology Holocene Ice ages Paleoclimatology Palynology Blytt–Sernander system Dryas octopetala

Dates

Description

Evidence

Ice core δ18O evidence

Lake sediment evidence

Ocean sediment evidence

Moraine evidence

Flora

Fauna

Humans

See also

Notes

References

External links

Ice core δ¹⁸O evidence