Shearwater Eggs in Lobos 3, a Holocene Site of Fuerteventura (Canary Islands)

Abstract

Two eggs (L29 and N28) were recovered in the Holocene site of Lobos 3, (Islote de Lobos, north Fuerteventura, Canary Islands), the site has been interpreted as a purple dye workshop from the Early Roman Empire Epoch. For the first time, eggs from a Holocene deposit of the Canary Islands have been analyzed in terms of size, shape, and biomineral structure, and studied on the basis of several thin sections and SEM analysis. The analysis of the remains allowed the assignation of both eggs to Procellariidae birds, thanks to the relative proportion of the eggshell layers and the vesiculation patterns. The size of the eggs allowed the assignation of L29 to cf. Calonectris/Puffinus, and to cf. Puffinus for N28. The absence of more structural analysis on Procellariiformes eggshells prevent a more specific assignation. The accumulation pattern of the eggs is compatible with a seasonal occupation pattern of the Roman site.