This 10,000-Year-Old Hunting Strategy Changes What We Knew About Early Humans

A group of archaeologists based in the Karst region in Slovenia has found a vast network of ancient stone walls, which were once used as animal traps. These ancient structures have been found to stretch over 25 km and consist of long funnel-shaped structures that were designed to herd animals into small spaces or into a drop-off point, as shown by LiDAR technology. This is the first time such large-scale hunting structures have been found in Europe. This discovery was made by a group of archaeologists from the University of Ljubljana and the Institute for the Protection of Cultural Heritage in Slovenia. This technology (LiDAR) has helped the group scan the dense forests and rugged terrain and reveal patterns and structures not easily seen at a ground level. These structures cover around 870 km and feature a number of complex wall systems; without this technology, the scale of these structures would not have been discovered.

The design stands out most, with the walls low but extending for long distances and slowly narrowing into a funnel. Animals would be directed into pits or enclosures at the end of these funnels (History.com). The layout tells us that hunters were not relying on speed or direct confrontation but instead altering the environment to control the movement of animals. This shows a clear understanding of herd behaviour and terrain. Constructing these walls would have required at least 5,000 hours of labour, as researchers estimate (History.com). This implies a form of coordinated group effort rather than isolated activity. The scale of the project suggests that communities worked together over time, and probably organised seasonal hunts or collective drives. This challenges older assumptions that prehistoric European groups were loosely organized with a limited capacity for large projects.

The structures are very similar to “desert kites,” which are known from regions in Southwest Asia and North Africa (History.com). Those systems also use long stone walls to funnel animals into traps. The Slovenian examples tell us that a similar strategy existed in a very different environment, which indicated either independent development or possibly a broader pattern of human problem-solving across regions. Dating evidence places these constructions between 10,000 and 4,000 years ago, and spans the Mesolithic to Neolithic periods, which pushes back the timeline for complex hunting systems in Europe. It also might indicate that people at the time were capable of environmental modification and coordinated labour long before the Bronze Age.

This is a new dimension in the understanding of prehistoric societies. They were not just small groups responding to their immediate needs. They were able to change the landscape on a grand scale and implement a series of strategies in order to survive by working together. The stone walls in Slovenia represent a strategy of hunting that is both informed and coordinated. It is possible that as more surveys of the landscape using LiDAR are completed, more of these hidden structures could be discovered. However, the Karst Plateau is a demonstration of how much of the activity of the early inhabitants of the region is embedded in the landscape and is still waiting to be discovered.