Tag

Border Cave

All articles tagged with #border cave

Ancient humans consumed giant snails as part of their diet.

Originally Published 2 years ago — by Phys.org

Humans have been hunting and consuming giant African land snails for food for at least 100,000 years, according to a study led by the University of the Witwatersrand. The snails were brought to the Border Cave site in eastern South Africa, roasted and consumed, and fragments of their shells were found across most of the history of the cave. Snails are an excellent source of nutrients, easy to hunt, and could have been stored alive in the cave for some time before being consumed, but they are safest to eat when cooked. The study offers a detailed examination of diet and social behavior from the fragments of land snail shells found at the site.

science archaeology archaeology border-cave cooking diet giant-african-land-snails human-evolution

170,000 Years Ago, Prehistoric Humans Roasted and Ate Giant Land Snails

Originally Published 2 years ago — by Ancient Origins

Scientists have discovered the remains of giant snail shells at a 225,000-year-old archaeological site in southern Africa, indicating that these snails were a significant source of sustenance for the humans who lived there. A new study shows how small groups of hunter-gatherers captured, roasted and ate giant snails as early as 170,000 years ago. The giant snails would have been an important source of nutrition, especially for children and the elderly. The team of researchers working on the study suggested that when hunter-gatherer groups in southern Africa roamed the countryside hunting large animals, some of them, perhaps with limited mobility due to age or injury, might have stayed behind “snail-gathering.”

science archaeology archaeology border-cave giant-snails hunter-gatherers nutrition southern-africa