Seasonal calving in European prehistoric cattle
Résumé
Present-day domestic cattle are reproductively active throughout the year, which is a
major asset for dairy production. Large wild ungulates, in contrast, are seasonal
breeders, as were the last historic representatives of the aurochs, the wild ancestors of
cattle. Aseasonal reproduction in cattle is a consequence of domestication and herding,
but exactly when this capacity developed in domestic cattle is still unknown and the
extent to which early farming communities controlled reproduction seasonality is
debated. Seasonal or aseasonal calving would have shaped the socio-economic practices
of ancient farming societies differently, structuring the agropastoral calendar and
determining milk availability where dairying is attested. In this study, we reconstruct the
calving pattern through the analysis of stable oxygen isotope ratios of cattle tooth
enamel from 18 sites across Europe, dating from the 6th mill. cal BC (Early Neolithic) in
the Balkans to the 4th mill. cal BC (Middle Neolithic) in Western Europe. Seasonal calving
prevailed in Europe between the sixth and fourth millennia cal BC. These results suggest
that cattle agropastoral systems in Neolithic Europe were strongly constrained by
environmental factors, in particular forage resources. The ensuing fluctuations in milk
availability would account for cheese-making, transforming a seasonal milk supply into a
storable product.