Cova Negra

Cova Negra is an archaeological site near the town of Xàtiva in the Province of Valencia with remains that show sporadic and short-term occupation by Neanderthals in the Mousterian period [1]. The Neanderthals who occupied the area were avid eaters of birds; 247 remains of 18 different bird species were found [1]. A study carried out in 2019 provided the first ESR / U-Th chronology for the Cova Negra site and indicates that Neanderthals occupied this site during MIS 8–6, between 273 ± 26 ka and 146 ± 34 ka [1]. These results suggest that human occupation took place at the end of the Middle Pleistocene [1]. The site was discovered by the priest G. Viñes in 1933 [1].