A Brief Note on the Presence of the Common Hamster during the Late Glacial Period in Southwestern France

The Late Glacial period is characterized by slow warming, punctuated by short, cold episodes, such as the Younger Dryas (i.e., GS1). The impact of this climatic event on the mammal community is still poorly documented in southwestern France. Here, a new radiocarbon date obtained directly on fossil remains of common hamster, Cricetus cricetus, confirms its presence in southwestern France during the Younger Dryas (GS1). This observation currently suggests that C. cricetus could be an accurate chronological indicator of this event in southwestern France. In this particular case, it also demonstrates an attritional death, polluting the deposit, these remains having been found in the Combe-Cullier layer, attributed to an earlier period.