The authors declare no conflict of interest.

This paper represents a study of archaeological fish remains retrieved from the excavations conducted by C. S. Phillips between 1993 and 2001 at KalbaMODIFIER LETTER RIGHT HALF RING 4 (Emirate of Sharjah, UAE). KalbaMODIFIER LETTER RIGHT HALF RING 4 is a major coastal site that was continuously occupied from the Umm an-Nar period to the Iron Age (c. 2700-600 BCE). The site is of particular interest regarding monumental architecture, pottery studies and exchange networks across Arabia and its neighbouring regions from the Bronze Age onwards. A corpus of about 5500 fish remains provides information on fishing economies during the entire occupation of the site. Data regarding fish complement results previously obtained from the study of other fauna including marine molluscs, sea turtles, terrestrial and marine mammals. They allow us to document a fishing-based economy at KalbaMODIFIER LETTER RIGHT HALF RING 4. The results highlight the exploitation of a quite limited range of fish taxa associated mostly with reef areas (groupers, trevallies, snappers, spangled emperors, King soldierbreams), brackish waters (mullets) and the open sea (scombrids). The techniques seem to have mainly involved the use of baited lines from boats, fishing nets and possibly cage traps. The discussion includes comparisons with the other main fish studies conducted for the Bronze Age and the Iron Age in Eastern Arabia.

Maritime adaptation is a key component of the Neolithization process in Eastern Arabia. It is expressed by the development of diversified fishing techniques, the exploitation of hard marine animal materials (e.g., seashells, shark teeth, stingray's barbs, etc.) for both tools and personal adornments production, advanced seafaring, and colonization of offshore islands. Although a diet based mainly on the consumption of marine fish and mollusks, the importance of other seafood has been greatly underestimated in previous zooarchaeological studies. Large quantities of marine crabs (NISP = 10,619) and sea urchins (NISP = 2454) have been retrieved from newly excavated Neolithic sites in the United Arab Emirates. These data highlight local developments of interest for specific seafood and their intensive exploitation over several centuries of human occupation. This study focuses on methods for identifying the main edible marine crab and sea urchin species retrieved from archaeological sites in Eastern Arabia. Results from the Neolithic sites of Delma Island and the Umm al-Quwain lagoon are discussed.

Fossil localities of the Baynunah Formation are here described, including previously known localities and those discovered by fieldwork since 2002. Site descriptions and coordinates are given, including updated coordinates for previously known localities. Many localities have been damaged or entirely lost to development activities.

The Baynunah Formation in the Al Gharbia region of Abu Dhabi Emirate was deposited by a major fluvial system and preserves the only known late Miocene terrestrial fossils in the Arabian Peninsula. We analyzed paleomagnetic samples from six sections (Jebel Barakah, Shuwaihat 2, Hamra 5, Mleisa 1, Mleisa 2, and Kihal 2) to develop a polarity stratigraphy for the Baynunah Formation. Based on these analyses, we documented a magnetic polarity stratigraphy, which, in combination with lithostratigraphy, allows us to propose a correlation of these six sections and their fossil localities. We show that first-order facies variations in the Baynunah Formation are diachronous. Confident correlations with the Geomagnetic Polarity Time Scale during the late Miocene cannot be determined; however, correlations based on the local polarity stratigraphy and biostratigraphy suggests that the Baynunah Formation was deposited over a duration of less than 750 kyr between ~7.7 and ~7.0 Ma during the late Tortonian and early Messinian. These results suggest that the fossil sites occurring throughout the lower part of the Baynunah unit and the fossil trackway sites found in the upper part of the formation are likely no more than a few hundred thousand years apart and could have been generated by the same taxa.

We report 87 specimens of hipparionine horse from the Baynunah Formation, United Arab Emirates. The dominate species is referred to “Hipparion” abudhabiense. “Hipparion” abudhabiense is represented by mandibles, mandibular and maxillary cheek teeth and a variety of postcranial bones, some of which are complete. Baynunah Formation early wear cheek teeth suggest that “Hipparion” abudhabiense was higher crowned than Central European Hippotherium primigenium with a maximum crown height of 60-65 mm. AUH 270, the type mandible is characterized as having a short, broad symphysis with horizontally aligned incisors. While the previous view was that this mandible suggested an evolutionary relationship with Greek Hipparion dietrichi, a fragmentary but otherwise elongate metacarpal III (AUH 1499) exhibits a close similarity to Akkasdagi (7.1 Ma) and Calta (4.0 Ma) “Plesiohipparion” cf. longipes. There is a rare, smaller species of hipparion that compares favorably in its size and morphology to Greek and Iranian members of the Cremohipparion matthewi-nikosi lineage. The Baynunah hipparion fauna supports a correlation of ca. 7 Ma, and a potential biogeographic affinity with Greece, Turkey, Iran and possibly Northern Kazakhstan.

Identification of fish bones from archaeological sites in southeast Arabia is challenging because of high taxonomic diversity, comparatively few reference collections with a wide range of species, as well as access to these resources. This paper provides illustrations of bones from many common taxonomic groups of fish from the southeast Arabia including several species of fish identified in very few assemblages, probably because of the lack of comparative reference material. This is a guide to aid other analysts in the identification process. We also consider the effect of reference collection size on the taxonomic diversity of analysed fish bone assemblages and conclude that research would benefit by the publication of further identification guides. Ideally these should include differences between closely related species, as this has a significant impact on the taxonomic diversity of archaeo-ichthyological assemblages. Although many papers are devoted to the influence of sample size, recovery method or recording protocols on the taxonomic diversity of faunal assemblages, a similar discussion on the effect of the reference collection used is often overlooked.

The story of the discovery of late Miocene fossils within the Baynunah geological formation in Abu Dhabi’s western Al Dhafra region concerns a host of international paleontologists, many of whom have contributed to this volume, as well as the backing of their related scientific institutions. In particular, the first study of the Baynunah owes a lot to the late Peter Whybrow (1942-2004) and a co-editor of the present volume, the late Andrew Hill (1946-2015). The discovery of the majority of the important fossils described in this publication would have not happened without their personal contributions. From the early 1980s until today, the Abu Dhabi government has always been a supportive partner to this paleontological research and continues to document, research, and protect important fossil sites that are part of the late Miocene Baynunah Formation, as well as curate the important collection of fossil specimens resulting from this work. This present publication provides details of the latest comprehensive overview of the Baynunah fossils and updates the earlier volume, Fossil Vertebrates of Arabia (Whybrow and Hill, 1999). A large number of new fossil specimens were discovered during the newer field seasons of work carried out between 2003 and 2018. This has provided an opportunity to undertake major revisions and updates of some of the Baynunah fauna.

Identification of fish bones from archeological sites in southeast Arabia requires access to an extensive reference collection. This is often not possible, and repeated use of these resources when they are available ultimately damages bones. This paper provides a platform from which high-resolution images of 60 species of marine fishes from southeast Arabia can be downloaded, aiding identification and providing illustrations that other researchers can modify to produce graphics to highlight taphonomic modification to bones or illustrate measurements taken.

In addition to skeletal remains that record the presence of a diverse vertebrate fauna, the Baynunah Formation also preserves fossil trackways. These are found on deflated surfaces of carbonate-rich beds, mainly at sites located inland from the coast. Footprints, like other trace fossils, may be difficult to assign to particular species, but provide a window onto ancient behavior that is not attainable from skeletal remains alone. Nine sites bearing fossil footprints have been identified to date in the Baynunah Formation. These are presented and described here, most for the first time. The large majority of footprints (and the most easily identifiable) were made by proboscideans, but three trackways belong to a large ungulate, probably a giraffid, and one print may be that of a hippopotamid. The site of Mleisa 1 is particularly important for its remarkable preservation of the passage of a proboscidean herd intersected by the trackway of a large solitary individual, showing that herding behavior, and possibly also sexual segregation, both hallmarks of modern elephants, were already present in late Miocene proboscideans. Given the large areas across which the carbonates of the Baynunah Formation are exposed inland, many more trackways likely remain to be discovered.

The Osprey Pandion haliaetus is one of the most widely distributed raptor species in the world, present on all continents except Antarctica. Since its diet is mainly based on fish, this raptor is typically encountered close both to marine and fresh waters. Ospreys are well represented in the Arabian Peninsula where remote islands are the location for some of their key breeding sites. On Marawah Island (Emirate of Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates), ospreys have been reported to build nests on top of abandoned man-made structures, including archaeological sites. The discovery of fish remains associated with numerous bird bones and eggshell fragments in archaeological deposits raises the question of the potential contamination of ancient faunal accumulations by birds of prey. To date, the possible impact of ospreys on zooarchaeological assemblages has been little considered and the taphonomic signature of this fish-eating raptor has never been described. However, ospreys are effective competitors to traditional and small-scale fisheries and should be considered as potential accumulators of fish remains on archaeological sites located close to water bodies. Indeed, zooarchaeological analyses demonstrate that fish had always played a major role in the daily subsistence of the ancient inhabitants of Marawah Island since the first traces of occupation dating back some 8000 years. The present study will enable researchers working in the region as well as in other geographical area to determine if ospreys are accumulation agents for fish remains on archaeological sites. The present diet assessment of ospreys allows us to specify the taphonomic signature of this raptor: targeted species are mainly medium to large-sized fish swimming just beneath the surface (e.g. needlefish and queenfish) and slow benthic fish occurring in shallow waters such as tripodfish, emperors, and groupers. Bone accumulations are almost entirely composed of skull elements, indicating specific discarding behaviours. Certain traces left on jaw bones, in particular maxillae, can also help to differentiate osprey accumulations from archaeological ones.

This paper presents the results of a study of nearly 8000 fish bones from MR11 Area A, a Neolithic stone-built house located on Marawah Island, United Arab Emirates. Radiocarbon dating indicates that the site was inhabited from the first half of the 6th to the mid-5th millennium BC, making it one of the oldest Neolithic occupation sites in the whole of the Arabian Gulf. Initial excavations between 2003 and 2004 revealed a single room and then more recent excavations in 2016-2017 uncovered two adjacent structures which proved to be a tripartite house. Examination of the fish remains from this particular site allows both a spatial and diachronic analysis. Archaeo-ichthyological studies can determine the role of fisheries within the subsistence strategies of past societies and the fishing techniques they adopted. This study provides important evidence regarding coastal and island lifestyle during the Neolithic. It outlines the predominance of small coastal fish such as grunts, emperors, and seabreams in the faunal assemblage. It thus suggests that fishing was essentially carried out in the surrounding shallow waters where soft-bottoms and seagrass meadows predominate. Non-selective fishing techniques probably involved the use of small-mesh devices such as beach seines and coastal barrier traps.