Abstract: Animals remains discovered at the Guanzhuangping site in theYangtze River Three Gorges area belong to the Neolithic, Eastern Zhou and Ming Dynasty periods. Significant Neolithic faunal remains include Ailuropoda melanoleuca, Capricornis sumatraensis kanjereus and Equus przewalskii. Among them Capricornis sumatraensis kanjereus is the latest record of this kind of animal in China, whereas Bos Taurus dated to the Ming Dynasty was introduced from other region. The general feature of the faunal remains from the Guanzhuangping site shows that there was a natural landscape with the high-mountain and valley climate from the Neolithic to the Ming Dynasty. The barranca is dominated by a damp and hot forest climate, while in the peak area, there is a rather natural environmental change in terms of climate and vegetation. Faunal remains from the site also indicate that ancient residents had a strong reliance on wild animal resources as shown by the quantity of associated buried wild animal jaws dating to the Neolithic. A mandible of Ailuropoda as part of a burial is first reported here.

Key words: Ailuropoda melanoleuca; Animal remains; Ancient economy; Paleoenvironment; Guanzhuangping site; Three Gorges on the Yangtze River