Humans manufactured them 20,000 years ago. It is revealed by an analysis of dozens of excavated bone tools in deposits of the Vizcaya Gulf. The millenary whale bone tools were very useful to primitive humans.
First evidence
Whales are the largest animals on earth. They were an important source of food and materials such as oil and bones. They played a key role in the survival of many coastal human groups. However, tracking the origins of interactions between humans and whales is a challenge.
The investigation is directed by the French Research CNRs. It is published in Nature Communications. Analyze 83 bone tools excavated in deposits of the Vizcaya Gulf, along with 90 additional bones of the Santa Catalina cave, in the province of Vizcaya. They used mass spectrometry and radiocarbon dating to identify the species and age of the samples. They are the first known evidences for human use of whales as tools.
Varied species
The millenary whale tools took advantage of different species. According to Krista McGrath, the main author of the article, species such as cuminotas, common rords and blue whales were identified. All of them still present in the Vizcaya Gulf. Among the remains they also found gray whales. This is a species that is now found mainly in the North and Arctic Oceans.
In addition, the chemical data extracted from the bones give us a revealing idea about the eating habits of these old whales. It was found that these differ slightly from those of their modern peers. The conclusion is that this points to possible changes in behavior or marine environment. In summary, this discovery not only improves our understanding of the early use of the remains of whales by humans. It also sheds light on the role played by whales in the ecosystems of the past.
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