Le parti mancanti: faune del Paleolitico Medio nel deposito esterno della Grotta di Santa Croce, Bisceglie (BA)

The research which has been conducted since 1998 in the outside area of Santa Croce cave led to the discovery of a Middle Palaeolithic deposit rich in lithic industry and animal bones. This paper deals with the results obtained from the study of faunal remains recovered from two stratigraphic units: U.S. 525 and U.S. 535, closely related each other. Analysis of data shows the presence of only two species: Equus ferus and Bos primigenius, typical of grassland and forest-grassland. This particular faunal association, poor in taxa, is related to geomorphology of the territory and dry climate. The scarcity of juvenile elements belonging to horse and cattle in the sample, is probably the result of a hunting selection by humans. The study of bone fragments, both these identified taxonomically and a sample of unidentified remains, revealed an absence or a feeble presence of skeletal elements like ribs, vertebrae, epiphyses of long bones, carpals, tarsals, sesamoids and phalanges. If the scarcity of vertebrae, ribs and epiphyses is common in Middle and Upper Palaeolithic deposits, the very low quantity of small sized limb bones shows peculiar exploitation strategies of the skeletal material by Neandertals. Comparisons with other Italian sites confirms different modalities regarding the use of bones between Middle and Upper Palaeolithic.