The Level VII of Amalda I cave (Gipuzkoa, Spain) represents one of the latest Middle Palaeolithic occupations in the Cantabrian Region. It is characterized by the presence of Middle Palaeolithic lithic industry and animal remains, with clear evidences of anthropic and carnivore manipulation. At this site, the Neanderthal presence has been questioned in relation to the role of carnivores in the accumulation of large, medium-sized and small mammals. It has also been proposed that the Neanderthal occupation could have consisted of short-term occupations, where different activities took place in a structured space within the cave. However, all hypotheses lacked any integrative analysis of the site formation processes. With the aim of understanding these processes, a combination of spatial techniques, based on GIS and inferential statistics (density analysis, hotspots tools and palaeotopographic reconstruction), along with the taphonomic study of identifiable and non-identifiable macromammals remains, were employed. This study has revealed distinct use of the cave space by Neanderthals and carnivores. The major concentrations of lithics and medium-size mammal remains were clearly accumulated by humans at the cave entrance, while the small-size mammals were gathered by carnivores in an inner zone. The activities of the Neanderthals seem to be distinctly structured, suggesting a parallel exploitation of resources.

This work explores, for the first time, the application of a Terrestrial Laser Scanner (TLS) and a comparison of point clouds in the 4D monitoring of active sinkholes. The approach is tested in three highly-active sinkholes related to the dissolution of salt-bearing evaporites overlain by unconsolidated alluvium. The sinkholes are located in urbanized areas and have caused severe damage to critical infrastructure (flood-control dike, a major highway). The 3D displacement models derived from the comparison of point clouds with exceptionally high spatial resolution allow complex spatial and temporal subsidence patterns within one of the sinkholes to be resolved. Detected changes in the subsidence activity (e.g., sinkhole expansion, translation of the maximum subsidence zone, development of incipient secondary collapses) are related to potential controlling factors such as floods, water table changes or remedial measures. In contrast, with detailed mapping and high-precision leveling, the displacement models, covering a relatively short time span of around 6 months, do not capture the subtle subsidence (<0.6–1 cm) that affects the marginal zones of the sinkholes, precluding precise mapping of the edges of the subsidence areas. However, the performance of TLS can be adversely affected by some methodological limitations and local conditions: (1) limited accuracy in large investigation areas that require the acquisition of a high number of scans, increasing the registration error; (2) surface changes unrelated to sinkhole activity (e.g., vegetation, loose material); (3) traffic-related vibrations and wind blast that affect the stability of the scanner.

El yacimiento de Navalmaíllo es un abrigo kárstico localizado en un entorno de montaña cerca del río Lozoya. La ubicación del yacimiento permite un control del entorno, siguiendo las migraciones de animales y para el establecimiento temporal de los grupos humanos. Las dificultades asociadas con la temporalidad relacionada con los procesos ocupacionales de los yacimientos, desvelan la problemática vinculada a la sincronía y diacronía de las ocupaciones que componen los palimpsestos. La arqueoestratigrafía ha permitido conocer la integridad del depósito, y cómo se ha visto afectado por procesos naturales (la caída de bloques y la conservación del yacimiento) y humanos (el método de excavación). La deformación del depósito plástico ha quedado reflejada en la arqueoestratigrafía, pero los dos periodos de ocupación identificación han quedado preservados y apenas se han visto afectados por esta caída de bloques. El enfoque arqueoestratigráfico ha permitido la identificación de algunos de los aspectos tafosedimentarios del nivel F y desgranar el palimpsesto cultural, estableciendo la secuencia cultural de ocupaciones en el yacimiento de Navalmaíllo.