Given the central adaptive role of diet, paleodietary inference is essential for understanding the relationship between evolutionary and paleoenvironmental change. Here we rely on dental microwear analysis to investigate the role of dietary specialization in the diversification and extinction of Miocene hominoids from Western Eurasian between 14 and 7 Ma. New microwear results for five extinct ...

Abstract Stable isotope analysis has become an essential tool in investigations of ancient migration and paleodietary reconstruction. Because the biogeochemistry bone collagen apatite is well known, current methods rely almost exclusively on analyses bones teeth; however, dental calculus represents a potentially additional biological source isotopic data from skeletons. Dental mineralized bacte...

The emphasis on tooth enamel for extraction of stable light isotope signals from the mineral phase of archaeological and paleontological calcified tissues is based on the widespread understanding that enamel remains a relatively closed system, while bone does not. Twenty years ago, however, Sullivan and Krueger s groundbreaking study demonstrating the potential of stable carbon isotopes from th...

The relationship between environmental change and hominin evolution remains obscure. For the most part, this stems from the difficulty of reconstructing ancient hominin habitats. Bovids are among the most frequently utilized paleoenvironmental indicators, but little is known about the habitat preferences of extinct taxa. It is generally assumed that fossil bovids both ate the same things and oc...

The calcium isotopic composition (δ44/42Ca) of bone and tooth enamel can be used for dietary reconstructions extant extinct mammals. In natural conditions, the δ44/42Ca value teeth varies according to intake with a constant offset about −0.6‰. Owing poor conservation collagen, carbon (C), nitrogen (N) compositions Regourdou Mousterian site (MIS 5, Dordogne, France) previously failed provide any...

Dental microwear analysis is an oft-used paleodietary estimation method, and the impression molds or resin casts are often analyzed rather than original tooth surfaces. A choice of silicone products for dental impressions crucial because quality data affected by accuracy molds. For this reason, researchers have heavily depended on a few commercial such as “President” (Coltène/Whaledent AG, Swit...

S • A3 expansion of C4 grasses. Mesowear analysis and mandibular measurements were recorded on a suite of common Siwalik ungulate taxa including bovids, tragulids, giraffids, and equids dated before and after 8 Ma. Results are compared to published microwear and stable carbon isotope data. Preliminary data suggest that the dietary reconstruction obtained for some taxa as well as the observation...

We examine here the carbon and nitrogen isotopic compositions of bulk soils (8 topsoil and 7 subsoils, including two soil profiles) and five different plant parts of 79 C3 plants from two main functional groups: herbs and shrubs/subshrubs, from 18 different locations in grasslands of southern Yukon Territory, Canada (eastern shoreline of Kluane Lake and Whitehorse area). The Kluane Lake region ...

Abstract Current paleodietary studies about the Naviform and Talayotic groups that took place in Minorca (Balearic Islands) during Late Bronze Age–Early Iron Age (ca.1600–850/800 BC) have suggested a mixed variable diet, largely depending on terrestrial sources of vegetables meat. This study explores nutritional pattern individuals buried Cova des Pas site (Minorca Island, Spain), cave used as ...