Fossil discovery suggests tigers once roamed Palawan

MANILA, Philippines — Fossil evidence from Pilandok Cave indicates that tigers once inhabited Palawan and may have been hunted or skinned by prehistoric humans more than 20,000 years ago.

Researchers reported the discovery of nine tiger (Panthera tigris) fossil specimens from Pilandok Cave in Quezon, Palawan, in a study published in the Cambridge Archaeological Journal, suggesting the species naturally roamed the island during the Late Pleistocene.

The fossils were recovered from an archaeological midden layer dated to the Last Glacial Maximum, about 20,000 to 24,000 years ago. Researchers found that three of the tiger foot bones bore cut marks made by humans, while three deer bones from the same layer showed gnawing marks attributed to a large carnivore believed to be a tiger.

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The research was led by Janine Ochoa of the University of the Philippines Diliman School of Archaeology, together with co-authors from the National Museum of the Philippines, UP Diliman, Birkbeck University of London, and the Indigenous Political Structure of Maasin, Quezon, Palawan.

According to the study, the nine fossils include a complete third metacarpal, a complete sub-terminal phalanx, and fragments of other foot bones. Morphological and morphometric analyses distinguished the remains from those of leopards and identified them as belonging to a tiger.

The researchers also noted that the Pilandok tiger appeared smaller than modern continental tigers but larger than modern Sumatran and Malayan tigers, consistent with the size of Sunda tigers.

The cut marks were found on bones where ligaments and muscles attach, suggesting prehistoric humans detached soft tissue while skinning the animal or removing its forefeet to obtain its pelt, paws or claws, the study said. Six of the tiger bones also showed evidence of heat alteration or charring.

Researchers examined the broader assemblage of animal remains from the cave and found that deer accounted for 92 percent of the identified vertebrate bones. While evidence of carnivore gnawing was rare, three deer bones displayed tooth pits, punctures and furrowing consistent with feeding by a large carnivore.

Because the tiger is the only large carnivore identified from the site’s Last Glacial Maximum deposits, the researchers attributed the marks to the species.

The discovery adds to earlier evidence from Ille Cave in El Nido, where three tiger foot bones dating to about 9,000 to 14,000 years ago had previously been identified. Together, the finds extend the known prehistoric presence of tigers from northern to southern Palawan over a period spanning roughly 22,000 to 10,000 years ago.

The authors said the fossil record supports the hypothesis that a natural tiger population once inhabited Palawan. During the Last Glacial Maximum, lower sea levels brought Palawan much closer to Borneo, where tiger fossils have also been found, making dispersal between the islands plausible, the study said.

Beyond documenting the tiger’s prehistoric presence, the researchers said the evidence points to a relationship between humans and the large predator that may have extended beyond hunting.

They suggested the selective use of tiger body parts could have been linked to beliefs about power and personhood associated with the animal, indicating that tigers were part of the multispecies social world inhabited by prehistoric communities in Palawan.

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