1
|
O'Keefe FR, Dunn RE, Weitzel EM, Waters MR, Martinez LN, Binder WJ, Southon JR, Cohen JE, Meachen JA, DeSantis LRG, Kirby ME, Ghezzo E, Coltrain JB, Fuller BT, Farrell AB, Takeuchi GT, MacDonald G, Davis EB, Lindsey EL. Pre-Younger Dryas megafaunal extirpation at Rancho La Brea linked to fire-driven state shift. Science 2023; 381:eabo3594. [PMID: 37590347 DOI: 10.1126/science.abo3594] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2022] [Accepted: 07/12/2023] [Indexed: 08/19/2023]
Abstract
The cause, or causes, of the Pleistocene megafaunal extinctions have been difficult to establish, in part because poor spatiotemporal resolution in the fossil record hinders alignment of species disappearances with archeological and environmental data. We obtained 172 new radiocarbon dates on megafauna from Rancho La Brea in California spanning 15.6 to 10.0 thousand calendar years before present (ka). Seven species of extinct megafauna disappeared by 12.9 ka, before the onset of the Younger Dryas. Comparison with high-resolution regional datasets revealed that these disappearances coincided with an ecological state shift that followed aridification and vegetation changes during the Bølling-Allerød (14.69 to 12.89 ka). Time-series modeling implicates large-scale fires as the primary cause of the extirpations, and the catalyst of this state shift may have been mounting human impacts in a drying, warming, and increasingly fire-prone ecosystem.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- F Robin O'Keefe
- Department of Biological Sciences, Marshall University, Huntington, WV, USA
- La Brea Tar Pits and Museum, Natural History Museums of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Regan E Dunn
- La Brea Tar Pits and Museum, Natural History Museums of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Department of Earth Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Elic M Weitzel
- Department of Anthropology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
| | - Michael R Waters
- Center for the Study of the First Americans, Department of Anthropology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA
| | - Lisa N Martinez
- Department of Geography, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Wendy J Binder
- La Brea Tar Pits and Museum, Natural History Museums of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Department of Biology, Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - John R Southon
- Department of Earth System Science, University California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA
| | - Joshua E Cohen
- La Brea Tar Pits and Museum, Natural History Museums of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Department of Biology, Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Department of Biology, Pace University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Julie A Meachen
- La Brea Tar Pits and Museum, Natural History Museums of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Department of Anatomy, Des Moines University, Des Moines, IA, USA
| | - Larisa R G DeSantis
- La Brea Tar Pits and Museum, Natural History Museums of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
- Department of Earth and Environmental Science, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Matthew E Kirby
- Department of Geological Sciences, California State University, Fullerton, Fullerton, CA, USA
| | - Elena Ghezzo
- Department of Environmental Sciences, Informatics, and Statistics, Università Ca' Foscari Venezia, Venice, Italy
- Department of Earth Sciences, University Oregon, Eugene, OR, USA
| | - Joan B Coltrain
- Department of Anthropology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA
| | - Benjamin T Fuller
- Géosciences Environnement Toulouse, UMR 5563, CNRS, Observatoire Midi-Pyrénées, Toulouse, France
| | - Aisling B Farrell
- La Brea Tar Pits and Museum, Natural History Museums of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Gary T Takeuchi
- La Brea Tar Pits and Museum, Natural History Museums of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Glen MacDonald
- Department of Geography, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Edward B Davis
- Department of Environmental Sciences, Informatics, and Statistics, Università Ca' Foscari Venezia, Venice, Italy
- Department of Earth Sciences, University Oregon, Eugene, OR, USA
| | - Emily L Lindsey
- La Brea Tar Pits and Museum, Natural History Museums of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Department of Earth Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Institute of the Environment and Sustainability, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
DeSantis LRG, Feranec RS, Southon J, Cerling TE, Harris J, Binder WJ, Cohen JE, Farrell AB, Lindsey EL, Meachen J, Robin O'Keefe F, Takeuchi GT. On the relationship between collagen- and carbonate-derived carbon isotopes with implications for the inference of carnivore dietary behavior. Front Ecol Evol 2022. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2022.1031383] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Studies of Rancho La Brea predators have yielded disparate dietary interpretations when analyzing bone collagen vs. enamel carbonate—requiring a better understanding of the relationship between stable carbon isotopes in these tissues. Stable carbon isotope spacing between collagen and carbonate (Δca-co) has also been used as a proxy for inferring the trophic level of mammals, with higher Δca-co values indicative of high carbohydrate consumption. To clarify the stable isotope ecology of carnivorans, past and present, we analyzed bone collagen (carbon and nitrogen) and enamel carbonate (carbon) of extinct and extant North American felids and canids, including dire wolves, sabertooth cats, coyotes, and pumas, supplementing these with data from African wild dogs and African lions. Our results reveal that Δca-co values are positively related to enamel carbonate values in secondary consumers and are less predictive of trophic level. Results indicate that the foraging habitat and diet of prey affects Δca-co in carnivores, like herbivores. Average Δca-co values in Pleistocene canids (8.7+/−1‰) and felids (7.0+/−0.7‰) overlap with previously documented extant herbivore Δca-co values suggesting that trophic level estimates may be relative to herbivore Δca-co values in each ecosystem and not directly comparable between disparate ecosystems. Physiological differences between felids and canids, ontogenetic dietary differences, and diagenesis at Rancho La Brea do not appear to be primary drivers of Δca-co offsets. Environmental influences affecting protein and fat consumption in prey and subsequently by predators, and nutrient routing to tissues may instead be driving Δca-co offsets in extant and extinct mammals.
Collapse
|
3
|
Pardi MI, DeSantis LRG. Interpreting spatially explicit variation in dietary proxies through species distribution modeling reveals foraging preferences of mammoth (Mammuthus) and American mastodon (Mammut americanum). Front Ecol Evol 2022. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2022.1064299] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Abstract
IntroductionThe end Pleistocene was a time of considerable ecological upheaval. Recent work has explored the megafauna extinction’s role in altering ecosystem processes. Analyses of functional traits withing communities reveal hidden consequences of the megafauna extinction beyond declines in taxonomic diversity. Functional diversity analyses offer new insight into our understanding of past ecosystems and may even inform future rewilding efforts. However, the utility of functional diversity may be hampered by the use of discrete, taxon-level functional traits, such as dietary categories, that mask variation in functional diversity over space and time.MethodsWe present an approach in which species distribution modeling, in Maxent, provides context for interpreting variation in two widely used proxies for diet among fossil taxa: stable isotope analysis and dental microwear texture analysis. We apply this approach to two ecologically distinct taxa, the American mastodon (Mammut americanum) and mammoths (Mammuthus) and investigate their resource use over space and time from the last glacial maximum to the end Pleistocene (25–11.7 thousand years before present).ResultsMammoth dietary behavior varies by context across their geographic distribution, despite possessing evolutionary adaptations that facilitate grazing. Mammoths exhibit a preference for grazing where species distribution modeling predicts the highest likelihood of occurrence but engage in more mixed-feeding outside of core likelihood areas. In contrast, dietary preferences for mastodon are less resolved and our analyses were unable to identify significant differences in diet across their distribution.DiscussionThe ecological roles of some species are context specific and need to be critically evaluated when planning for management of reintroductions or introducing novel species to restore lost ecological function.
Collapse
|
4
|
Burtt AA, DeSantis LRG. Exploring durophagy among modern gray wolves from the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem with dental microwear texture analysis. J Zool (1987) 2022. [DOI: 10.1111/jzo.12957] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Amanda A. Burtt
- Anthropology Department Indiana University Bloomington IN USA
| | - Larisa R. G. DeSantis
- Department of Biological Sciences Vanderbilt University Nashville TN USA
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences Vanderbilt University Nashville TN USA
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
DeSantis LRG, Pardi MI, Du A, Greshko MA, Yann LT, Hulbert RC, Louys J. Global long-term stability of individual dietary specialization in herbivorous mammals. Proc Biol Sci 2022; 289:20211839. [PMID: 35135353 PMCID: PMC8826132 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2021.1839] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Dietary variation within species has important ecological and evolutionary implications. While theoreticians have debated the consequences of trait variance (including dietary specialization), empirical studies have yet to examine intraspecific dietary variability across the globe and through time. Here, we use new and published serial sampled δ13Cenamel values of herbivorous mammals from the Miocene to the present (318 individuals summarized, 4134 samples) to examine how dietary strategy (i.e. browser, mixed-feeder, grazer) affects individual isotopic variation. We find that almost all herbivores, regardless of dietary strategy, are composed of individual specialists. For example, Cormohipparion emsliei (Equidae) from the Pliocene of Florida (approx. 5 Ma) exhibits a δ13Cenamel range of 13.4‰, but all individuals sampled have δ13Cenamel ranges of less than or equal to 2‰ (mean = 1.1‰). Most notably, this pattern holds globally and through time, with almost all herbivorous mammal individuals exhibiting narrow δ13Cenamel ranges (less than or equal to 3‰), demonstrating that individuals are specialized and less representative of their overall species' dietary breadth. Individual specialization probably reduces intraspecific competition, increases carrying capacities, and may have stabilizing effects on species and communities over time. Individual specialization among species with both narrow and broad dietary niches is common over space and time-a phenomenon not previously well recognized or documented empirically.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Larisa R G DeSantis
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, 1210 BSB/MRBIII 465 21st Avenue S., Nashville, TN 37232, USA.,Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Vanderbilt University, 7th floor, Science and Engineering Building, 5726 Stevenson Center, Nashville, TN 37240, USA
| | - Melissa I Pardi
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Vanderbilt University, 7th floor, Science and Engineering Building, 5726 Stevenson Center, Nashville, TN 37240, USA.,Research and Collections Center, Illinois State Museum, 1011 E. Ash St., Springfield, IL 62703, USA
| | - Andrew Du
- Research and Collections Center, Illinois State Museum, 1011 E. Ash St., Springfield, IL 62703, USA
| | - Michael A Greshko
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, 1210 BSB/MRBIII 465 21st Avenue S., Nashville, TN 37232, USA
| | - Lindsey T Yann
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Vanderbilt University, 7th floor, Science and Engineering Building, 5726 Stevenson Center, Nashville, TN 37240, USA.,Waco Mammoth National Monument, 6220 Steinbeck Bend Drive, Waco, TX 76708, USA
| | - Richard C Hulbert
- Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA
| | - Julien Louys
- Australian Research Centre for Human Evolution, Griffith University, Brisbane, Australia
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Pardi MI, DeSantis LRG. Correction to: 'Dietary plasticity of North American herbivores: a synthesis of stable isotope data over the past 7 million years'. Proc Biol Sci 2021; 288:20211416. [PMID: 34256000 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2021.1416] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
|
7
|
Petherick AS, Reuther JD, Shirar SJ, Anderson SL, DeSantis LRG. Dietary ecology of Alaskan polar bears (Ursus maritimus) through time and in response to Arctic climate change. Glob Chang Biol 2021; 27:3109-3119. [PMID: 33793039 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.15573] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2020] [Accepted: 01/25/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Arctic climate change poses serious threats to polar bears (Ursus maritimus) as reduced sea ice makes seal prey inaccessible and marine ecosystems undergo bottom-up reorganization. Polar bears' elongated skulls and reduced molar dentition, as compared to their sister species the grizzly bear (Ursus arctos), are adaptations associated with hunting seals on sea ice and a soft, lipid-rich diet of blubber and meat. With significant declines in sea ice, it is unclear if and how polar bears may be altering their diets. Clarifying polar bear dietary responses to changing climates, both today and in the past, is critical to proper conservation and management of this apex predator. This is particularly important when a dietary strategy may be maladaptive. Here, we test the hypothesis that hard-food consumption (i.e., less preferred foods including bone), inferred from dental microwear texture analysis, increased with Arctic warming. We find that polar bears demonstrate a conserved absence of hard-object feeding in Alaska through time (including approximately 1000 years ago), until the 21st century, consistent with a highly conserved and specialized diet of soft blubber and flesh. Notably, our results also suggest that some 21st-century polar bears may be consuming harder foods (e.g., increased carcass utilization, terrestrial foods including garbage), despite having skulls and metabolisms poorly suited for such a diet. Prior to the 21st century, only polar bears with larger mandibles demonstrated increased hard-object feeding, though to a much lower degree than closely related grizzly bears which regularly consume mechanically challenging foods. Polar bears, being morphologically specialized, have biomechanical constraints which may limit their ability to consume mechanically challenging diets, with dietary shifts occurring only under the most extreme scenarios. Collectively, the highly specialized diets and cranial morphology of polar bears may severely limit their ability to adapt to a warming Arctic.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ansley S Petherick
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Joshua D Reuther
- Archaeology Department, University of Alaska Museum of the North, Fairbanks, AK, USA
- Department of Anthropology, University of Alaska, Fairbanks, AK, USA
| | - Scott J Shirar
- Archaeology Department, University of Alaska Museum of the North, Fairbanks, AK, USA
| | - Shelby L Anderson
- Department of Anthropology, Portland State University, Portland, OR, USA
| | - Larisa R G DeSantis
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
DeSantis LRG, Feranec RS, Antón M, Lundelius EL. Dietary ecology of the scimitar-toothed cat Homotherium serum. Curr Biol 2021; 31:2674-2681.e3. [PMID: 33862006 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2021.03.061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2020] [Revised: 01/19/2021] [Accepted: 03/17/2021] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
The scimitar-toothed cat Homotherium was one of the most cosmopolitan cats of the Pleistocene, present throughout Eurasia, Africa, and the Americas until at least ~28 thousand years ago.1-3 Friesenhahn Cave (Bexar County, Texas) contains some of the best-preserved specimens of Homotherium serum alongside an abundance of juvenile mammoths, leading some to argue that H. serum preferentially hunted juvenile mammoths.1,4 Dietary data of Homotherium are rare, with their ecology inferred from morphological, taphonomic, and genetic data.1,3-10 Here, we use a multi-proxy approach to clarify the dietary ecology of H. serum as compared to extinct and extant cats and their relatives. Dental microwear texture analysis (DMTA) reveals that H. serum consumed soft and tough foods, similar to the extant cheetah, which actively avoids bone,11,12 but in stark contrast to extant lions and hyenas, which are observed to engage in durophagy (i.e., bone processing).11-14 DMTA data are consistent with taphonomic evidence of bone defleshing and the absence of bone-crunching behavior in H. serum. Stable carbon isotope values of H. serum indicate a clear preference for C4 grazers including juvenile mammoths, in agreement with taphonomic evidence suggestive of a "Homotherium den"1,4 and morphological data indicative of a relatively cursorial lifestyle.6-8 Notably, the inferred diet of H. serum contrasts with the extinct dirk-tooth sabertooth cat Smilodon fatalis, which preferred forest/woodland prey and engaged in bone processing.15-19Homotherium serum exhibited a novel combination of morphological adaptations for acquiring open-country prey, consuming their soft and tough flesh-including the tough flesh of juvenile mammoths. VIDEO ABSTRACT.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Larisa R G DeSantis
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235-1634, USA; Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235-1805, USA; Department of Rancho La Brea, La Brea Tar Pits and Museum, Los Angeles, CA 90036, USA.
| | - Robert S Feranec
- Research and Collections, New York State Museum, Albany, NY 12230, USA
| | - Mauricio Antón
- Department of Paleobiology, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales, CSIC, C. Jose Gutiérrez Abascal 2, Madrid 28006, Spain
| | - Ernest L Lundelius
- Vertebrate Paleontology Laboratory, Jackson Museum of Earth History, University of Texas, Austin, TX 78712, USA
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Abstract
Palaeoecological interpretations are based on our understanding of dietary and habitat preferences of fossil taxa. While morphology provides approximations of diets, stable isotope proxies provide insights into the realized diets of animals. We present a synthesis of the isotopic ecologies (δ13C from tooth enamel) of North American mammalian herbivores since approximately 7 Ma. We ask: (i) do morphological interpretations of dietary behaviour agree with stable isotope proxy data? (ii) are grazing taxa specialists, or is grazing a means to broaden the dietary niche? and (iii) how is dietary niche breadth attained in taxa at the local level? We demonstrate that while brachydont taxa are specialized as browsers, hypsodont taxa often have broader diets that included more browse consumption than previously anticipated. It has long been accepted that morphology imposes limits on the diet; this synthesis supports prior work that herbivores with ‘grazing’ adaptions, such as hypsodont teeth, have the ability to consume grass but are also able to eat other foods. Notably, localized dietary breadth of even generalist taxa can be narrow (approx. 30 to 60% of a taxon's overall breadth). This synthesis demonstrates that ‘grazing-adapted’ taxa are varied in their diets across space and time, and this flexibility may reduce competition among ancient herbivores.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Melissa I Pardi
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA.,Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
| | - Larisa R G DeSantis
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA.,Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Braun DR, Faith JT, Douglass MJ, Davies B, Power MJ, Aldeias V, Conard NJ, Cutts R, DeSantis LRG, Dupont LM, Esteban I, Kandel AW, Levin NE, Luyt J, Parkington J, Pickering R, Quick L, Sealy J, Stynder D. Ecosystem engineering in the Quaternary of the West Coast of South Africa. Evol Anthropol 2021; 30:50-62. [PMID: 33604991 DOI: 10.1002/evan.21886] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2019] [Revised: 06/30/2020] [Accepted: 12/22/2020] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Despite advances in our understanding of the geographic and temporal scope of the Paleolithic record, we know remarkably little about the evolutionary and ecological consequences of changes in human behavior. Recent inquiries suggest that human evolution reflects a long history of interconnections between the behavior of humans and their surrounding ecosystems (e.g., niche construction). Developing expectations to identify such phenomena is remarkably difficult because it requires understanding the multi-generational impacts of changes in behavior. These long-term dynamics require insights into the emergent phenomena that alter selective pressures over longer time periods which are not possible to observe, and are also not intuitive based on observations derived from ethnographic time scales. Generative models show promise for probing these potentially unexpected consequences of human-environment interaction. Changes in the uses of landscapes may have long term implications for the environments that hominins occupied. We explore other potential proxies of behavior and examine how modeling may provide expectations for a variety of phenomena.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- David R Braun
- The George Washington University, Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology, Washington, District of Columbia, USA.,Department of Human Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
| | - John Tyler Faith
- Natural History Museum of Utah, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA.,Department of Anthropology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
| | - Matthew J Douglass
- College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, Nebraska, USA.,Agricultural Research Division, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, Nebraska, USA
| | - Benjamin Davies
- Natural History Museum of Utah, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
| | - Mitchel J Power
- Natural History Museum of Utah, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA.,Department of Geography, Natural History Museum of Utah, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
| | - Vera Aldeias
- Interdisciplinary Center for Archaeology and Evolution of Human Behaviour (ICArEHB), Universidade do Algarve, Faro, Portugal
| | - Nicholas J Conard
- Department of Early Prehistory and Quaternary Ecology, University of Tübingen, Schloss Hohentübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Russell Cutts
- Emory University-Oxford College, History and Social Sciences (Anthropology), Oxford, Georgia, USA
| | - Larisa R G DeSantis
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, USA
| | - Lydie M Dupont
- MARUM-Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany
| | - Irene Esteban
- Evolutionary Studies Institute, University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Andrew W Kandel
- The Role of Culture in Early Expansions of Humans, Heidelberg Academy of Sciences and Humanities, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Naomi E Levin
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Julie Luyt
- Department of Archaeology, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - John Parkington
- Department of Archaeology, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Robyn Pickering
- Department of Geological Science, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa.,Human Evolution Research Institute, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa
| | - Lynne Quick
- African Centre for Coastal Palaeoscience, Nelson Mandela University, Port Elizabeth, South Africa
| | - Judith Sealy
- Department of Archaeology, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Deano Stynder
- Department of Archaeology, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Larmon JT, McDonald HG, Ambrose S, DeSantis LRG, Lucero LJ. A year in the life of a giant ground sloth during the Last Glacial Maximum in Belize. Sci Adv 2019; 5:eaau1200. [PMID: 30820449 PMCID: PMC6392778 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.aau1200] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2018] [Accepted: 10/12/2018] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
Stable isotope analysis of the first fossilized Eremotherium laurillardi remains from Belize offers valuable insights into the conditions within which this individual lived and its ability to adapt to the increasing aridity of the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). Cathodoluminescence (CL) microscopy was used to identify chemical alteration of the tooth during fossilization. Results demonstrate that the inner orthodentin resists diagenesis, yielding potentially unaltered values. Using an intensive "vacuum milling" technique, the inner orthodentin produced an accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) date of 26,975 ± 120 calibrated years before the present. The stable carbon and oxygen isotope analysis of this layer shows that the tooth recorded two wet seasons separated by one longer dry season and that this sloth was able to adapt its diet to the marked seasonality of the LGM. This study offers new insights into obtaining reliable isotope data from fossilized remains and suggests that this individual adapted to climate shifts, contributing to the conversation surrounding megafauna extinction.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jean T. Larmon
- Department of Anthropology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, USA
| | | | - Stanley Ambrose
- Department of Anthropology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, USA
| | | | - Lisa J. Lucero
- Department of Anthropology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, USA
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
DeSantis LRG, Alexander J, Biedron EM, Johnson PS, Frank AS, Martin JM, Williams L. Effects of climate on dental mesowear of extant koalas and two broadly distributed kangaroos throughout their geographic range. PLoS One 2018; 13:e0201962. [PMID: 30133503 PMCID: PMC6104949 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0201962] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2018] [Accepted: 07/25/2018] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Dental mesowear analysis can classify the diets of extant herbivores into general categories such as grazers, mixed-feeders, and browsers by using the gross wear patterns found on individual teeth. This wear presumably results from both abrasion (food-on-tooth wear) and attrition (tooth-on-tooth wear) of individual teeth. Mesowear analyses on extinct ungulates have helped generate hypotheses regarding the dietary ecology of mammals across space and time, and recent developments have expanded the use of dental mesowear analysis to herbivorous marsupial taxa including kangaroos, wombats, possums, koalas, and relatives. However, the diet of some of the most ubiquitous kangaroos (e.g., Macropus giganteus) along with numerous other species cannot be successfully classified by dental mesowear analysis. Further, it is not well understood whether climate variables (including precipitation, relative humidity, and temperature) are correlated with dental mesowear variables including various measures of shape and relief. Here, we examine the relationship between dental mesowear variables (including traditional methods scoring the sharpest cusp and a new potential assessment of multiple cusps) and climate variables in the grazers/mixed feeders Macropus giganteus and Macropus fuliginosus, and the obligate browser Phascolarctos cinereus. We find that dental mesowear of mandibular teeth is capable of differentiating the dietary habits of koalas and the kangaroo species. Furthermore, both Macropus giganteus and Phascolarctos cinereus exhibit mesowear correlated with mean minimum temperature, while Macropus fuliginosus dental mesowear is unaffected by temperature, despite significant differences in mean minimum and mean maximum temperature across their distribution (and in the specimens examined here). Contrary to expectations that individuals from drier regions would have blunter and lower relief teeth, dental mesowear is unrelated to proxies of relative aridity—including mean annual precipitation and relative humidity. Collectively, dental mesowear in these marsupials is related to feeding behavior with increased wear in cooler regions (in Macropus giganteus and Phascolarctos cinereus) potentially related to more or different food resources consumed.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Larisa R. G. DeSantis
- Department of Earth and Environmental Science, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| | - Jagger Alexander
- Department of Earth and Environmental Science, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, United States of America
| | - Eva M. Biedron
- Department of Earth and Environmental Science, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, United States of America
| | - Phyllis S. Johnson
- Department of Anthropology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, United States of America
| | - Austin S. Frank
- Department of Earth and Environmental Science, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, United States of America
| | - John M. Martin
- Department of Earth and Environmental Science, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, United States of America
| | - Lindsay Williams
- Department of Earth and Environmental Science, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, United States of America
| |
Collapse
|
13
|
Stynder DD, DeSantis LRG, Donohue SL, Schubert BW, Ungar PS. A Dental Microwear Texture Analysis of the Early Pliocene African Ursid Agriotherium africanum (Mammalia, Carnivora, Ursidae). J MAMM EVOL 2018. [DOI: 10.1007/s10914-018-9436-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
|
14
|
Affiliation(s)
- Larisa R G DeSantis
- Larisa R. G. DeSantis is an assistant professor at Vanderbilt University in Nashville. Send your career story to
| |
Collapse
|
15
|
DeSantis LRG. I'm your mentor, not your mother. Science 2017. [DOI: 10.1126/science.caredit.aar3686] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
|
16
|
Abstract
Lions (Panthera leo) feed on diverse prey species, a range that is broadened by their cooperative hunting. Although humans are not typical prey, habitual man-eating by lions is well documented. Fathoming the motivations of the Tsavo and Mfuwe man-eaters (killed in 1898 in Kenya and 1991 in Zambia, respectively) may be elusive, but we can clarify aspects of their behaviour using dental microwear texture analysis. Specifically, we analysed the surface textures of lion teeth to assess whether these notorious man-eating lions scavenged carcasses during their depredations. Compared to wild-caught lions elsewhere in Africa and other large feliforms, including cheetahs and hyenas, dental microwear textures of the man-eaters do not suggest extreme durophagy (e.g. bone processing) shortly before death. Dental injuries to two of the three man-eaters examined may have induced shifts in feeding onto softer foods. Further, prompt carcass reclamation by humans likely limited the man-eaters’ access to bones. Man-eating was likely a viable alternative to hunting and/or scavenging ungulates due to dental disease and/or limited prey availability.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Larisa R G DeSantis
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, 37235-1805, USA.
| | - Bruce D Patterson
- Integrative Research Center, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, IL, 60605-2496, USA
| |
Collapse
|
17
|
Badgley C, Smiley TM, Terry R, Davis EB, DeSantis LRG, Fox DL, Hopkins SSB, Jezkova T, Matocq MD, Matzke N, McGuire JL, Mulch A, Riddle BR, Roth VL, Samuels JX, Strömberg CAE, Yanites BJ. Biodiversity and Topographic Complexity: Modern and Geohistorical Perspectives. Trends Ecol Evol 2017; 32:211-226. [PMID: 28196688 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2016.12.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 75] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2016] [Revised: 12/15/2016] [Accepted: 12/22/2016] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
Topographically complex regions on land and in the oceans feature hotspots of biodiversity that reflect geological influences on ecological and evolutionary processes. Over geologic time, topographic diversity gradients wax and wane over millions of years, tracking tectonic or climatic history. Topographic diversity gradients from the present day and the past can result from the generation of species by vicariance or from the accumulation of species from dispersal into a region with strong environmental gradients. Biological and geological approaches must be integrated to test alternative models of diversification along topographic gradients. Reciprocal illumination among phylogenetic, phylogeographic, ecological, paleontological, tectonic, and climatic perspectives is an emerging frontier of biogeographic research.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Catherine Badgley
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
| | - Tara M Smiley
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA; Department of Integrative Biology, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, USA
| | - Rebecca Terry
- Department of Integrative Biology, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, USA
| | - Edward B Davis
- Department of Geological Sciences, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, USA
| | - Larisa R G DeSantis
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - David L Fox
- Department of Earth Sciences, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | | | - Tereza Jezkova
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - Marjorie D Matocq
- Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Science, University of Nevada, Reno, NV, USA
| | - Nick Matzke
- Division of Evolution, Ecology, and Genetics, Research School of Biology, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
| | - Jenny L McGuire
- School of Biology, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Andreas Mulch
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre, Frankfurt, Germany; Institute of Geosciences, Goethe University Frankfurt, Frankfurt, Germany
| | - Brett R Riddle
- School of Life Sciences, University of Nevada at Las Vegas, Las Vegas, NV, USA
| | - V Louise Roth
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
| | | | | | - Brian J Yanites
- Department of Geological Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, USA
| |
Collapse
|
18
|
Veter NM, DeSantis LRG, Yann LT, Donohue SL, Haupt RJ, Corapi SE, Fathel SL, Gootee EK, Loffredo LF, Romer JL, Velkovsky SM. Is Rapoport's rule a recent phenomenon? A deep time perspective on potential causal mechanisms. Biol Lett 2013; 9:20130398. [PMID: 23945207 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2013.0398] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Macroecology strives to identify ecological patterns on broad spatial and temporal scales. One such pattern, Rapoport's rule, describes the tendency of species' latitudinal ranges to increase with increasing latitude. Several mechanisms have been proposed to explain this rule. Some invoke climate, either through glaciation driving differential extinction of northern species or through increased seasonal variability at higher latitudes causing higher thermal tolerances and subsequently larger ranges. Alternatively, continental tapering or higher interspecific competition at lower latitudes may be responsible. Assessing the incidence of Rapoport's rule through deep time can help to distinguish between competing explanations. Using fossil occurrence data from the Palaeobiology Database, we test these hypotheses by evaluating mammalian compliance with the rule throughout the Caenozoic of North America. Adherence to Rapoport's rule primarily coincides with periods of intense cooling and increased seasonality, suggesting that extinctions caused by changing climate may have played an important role in erecting the latitudinal gradients in range sizes seen today.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Nikolai M Veter
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37240, USA
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
19
|
|
20
|
DeSantis LRG, Feranec RS, MacFadden BJ. Effects of global warming on ancient mammalian communities and their environments. PLoS One 2009; 4:e5750. [PMID: 19492043 PMCID: PMC2684586 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0005750] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2009] [Accepted: 04/22/2009] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Current global warming affects the composition and dynamics of mammalian communities and can increase extinction risk; however, long-term effects of warming on mammals are less understood. Dietary reconstructions inferred from stable isotopes of fossil herbivorous mammalian tooth enamel document environmental and climatic changes in ancient ecosystems, including C3/C4 transitions and relative seasonality. Methodology/Principal Findings Here, we use stable carbon and oxygen isotopes preserved in fossil teeth to document the magnitude of mammalian dietary shifts and ancient floral change during geologically documented glacial and interglacial periods during the Pliocene (∼1.9 million years ago) and Pleistocene (∼1.3 million years ago) in Florida. Stable isotope data demonstrate increased aridity, increased C4 grass consumption, inter-faunal dietary partitioning, increased isotopic niche breadth of mixed feeders, niche partitioning of phylogenetically similar taxa, and differences in relative seasonality with warming. Conclusion/Significance Our data show that global warming resulted in dramatic vegetation and dietary changes even at lower latitudes (∼28°N). Our results also question the use of models that predict the long term decline and extinction of species based on the assumption that niches are conserved over time. These findings have immediate relevance to clarifying possible biotic responses to current global warming in modern ecosystems.
Collapse
|