Search results for "PALEOECOLOGY"

Identification problems of arid environments in the Neogene–Quaternary mammal record of Spain

2006

Abstract In this work, we investigate if broadly used methodologies are adequate to detect periods of aridity based on the Spanish fossil record and try to infer which of them were more or less severe. Thus, we present a qualitative statistical approach to two popular palaeoecological methodologies: ecological diversity and cenograms. Discriminant models, derived from modern localities of known biome, determined the probable biomes of Neogene–Quaternary fossil assemblages. Principal component analyses (PCA) provided additional inference on their ordination within an aridity gradient. While models work adequately with modern faunas, the analyses of the palaeocommunities showed that their eco…

Stable isotope analysis of well-preserved 120,000-year-old herbivore bone collagen from the Middle Palaeolithic site of Neumark-Nord 2, Germany revea…

2012

Abstract Herbivores from the Neumark-Nord 2 archaeological site, Germany, were analysed for bone collagen stable carbon (δ 13 C) and nitrogen (δ 15 N) isotope ratios in order to investigate feeding ecology at this early Last Interglacial (Eemian) shallow-lake site. Of 42 faunal samples selected, 23 yielded collagen, demonstrating remarkable preservation for material of this age. The results indicate clear inter-specific differences in δ 15 N and δ 13 C values, notably between equids ( Equus ) and bovids ( Bos/Bison ), with mean difference Δ 15 N of + 2‰ measured in the bovids compared to the equids. The potential reasons for these differences are explored, including physiology, herbivore fe…

Deep-Time Phylogenetic Clustering of Extinctions in an Evolutionarily Dynamic Clade (Early Jurassic Ammonites)

2012

7 pages; International audience; Conservation biologists and palaeontologists are increasingly investigating the phylogenetic distribution of extinctions and its evolutionary consequences. However, the dearth of palaeontological studies on that subject and the lack of methodological consensus hamper our understanding of that major evolutionary phenomenon. Here we address this issue by (i) reviewing the approaches used to quantify the phylogenetic selectivity of extinctions and extinction risks; (ii) investigating with a high-resolution dataset whether extinctions and survivals were phylogenetically clustered among early Pliensbachian (Early Jurassic) ammonites; (iii) exploring the phylogene…

The trace fossil gyrochorte: ethology and paleoecology

2021

Specimens of the trace fossil Gyrochorte from the Ordovician, Jurassic and Cretaceous of Utah, and the Pliocene of Spain are described. These occurrences expand the stratigraphic range of the ichnogenus, and allow for a re­examination of this paleoenvironmentally sensitive and puzzling trace fossil. The recognition of the penetrative characteristic of the trace is essential for a correct identification, as some trace fossils have been erroneously ascribed to Gyrochorte in the past. The producer must have been a detritus-feeding worm-like animal, probably an annelid,  that created a bilobed, vertically penetrating and sometimes plaited meandering trace. Gyrochorte typically occurs in sandy f…

Una fauna de foraminíferos en el Mioceno continental de la localidad de Buñol (provincia de Valencia)

1984

A fauna of benthonic forarninifera was found in the continental Miocene from Buñol (Valencia, Spain). This fauna was considered as autochthonous, Two species were identified: <i>Rosalina douvillei</i>(CUSHMAN) and <i>Quinqueloculinai seminula</i> (LINNÉ). A few number of planktonic individuals were found. These individuals were refered to the species <i>Globorotalia</i> cf. <i>mayeri</i> CUSHMAN & ELLISOR. The paleoenvironmental characteristics of this outcrops, taken into account the information obtained from benthonic foraminifera, and the bioestratigraphic data obtained from planktonic foraminifera are discussed.<br><br>En e…

1988

The living freshwater gastropod Melanopsis dufouri (FERUSSAC) has two morphotypes. The study of chemical variation of trace-elements in this gastropod and its correlation with the environmental fluctuation are the aim of this paper. Due to the genus Melanopsis has an abundant fossil record during the Cenozoic, the results of the present work could be of paleoecological interest. Trace-elements are embodied in the shell during growth. The shell of M. dufouri has accretionary growth. There are several examples cited on circadian accretionary growth in invertebrate shells. However, in the present case and as a first conclusion, the accretion rate depends on the size of the shell. In a short-ti…

Reproductive Biology and Its Impact on Body Size: Comparative Analysis of Mammalian, Avian and Dinosaurian Reproduction

2011

Janis and Carrano (1992) suggested that large dinosaurs might have faced a lower risk of extinction under ecological changes than similar-sized mammals because large dinosaurs had a higher potential reproductive output than similar-sized mammals (JC hypothesis). First, we tested the assumption underlying the JC hypothesis. We therefore analysed the potential reproductive output (reflected in clutch/litter size and annual offspring number) of extant terrestrial mammals and birds (as "dinosaur analogs") and of extinct dinosaurs. With the exception of rodents, the differences in the reproductive output of similar-sized birds and mammals proposed by Janis and Carrano (1992) existed even at the …

The ecomorphology of southern African rodent incisors: Potential applications to the hominin fossil record.

2018

AbstractThe taxonomic identification of mammalian fauna within fossil assemblages is a well-established component of paleoenvironmental reconstructions. However, many fragmentary specimens recovered from fossil sites are often disregarded as they can be difficult to identify with the precision required for taxonomic methods. For this reason, the large numbers of isolated rodent incisors that are often recovered from hominin fossil bearing sites have generally been seen as offering little interpretive value. Ecomorphological analysis, often referred to as a “taxon-free” method, can potentially circumvent this problem by focusing on the adaptive, rather than the taxonomic significance of rode…

On the socio-sexual behaviour of the extinct ursid Indarctos arctoides: an approach based on its baculum size and morphology

2013

The fossil bacula, or os penis, constitutes a rare subject of study due to its scarcity in the fossil record. In the present paper we describe five bacula attributed to the bear Indarctos arctoides Depéret, 1895 from the Batallones-3 site (Madrid Basin, Spain). Both the length and morphology of this fossil bacula enabled us to make interpretative approaches to a series of ecological and ethological characters of this bear. Thus, we suggest that I. arctoides could have had prolonged periods of intromission and/or maintenance of intromission during the post-ejaculatory intervals, a multi-male mating system and large home range sizes and/or lower population density. Its size might also have he…

Paleoenvironmental context of the early Neanderthals of Poggetti Vecchi for the late middle Pleistocene of Central Italy

2017

AbstractWork on thermal pools at Poggetti Vecchi in Grosseto, Italy, exposed an up to 3-meter-thick succession of seven sedimentary units. Unit 2 in the lower portion of the succession contained vertebrate bones, mostly of the straight-tusked elephant, Palaeoloxodon antiquus, commingled with stone, bone, and wooden tools. Thermal carbonates overlying Unit 2 are radiometrically dated to the latter part of the middle Pleistocene. This time span indicates that early Neanderthals produced the human artifacts from Poggetti Vecchi. The elephant bones belong to seven individuals of different ages. Sedimentary facies analysis and paleoecological evidence suggest a narrow lacustrine-palustrine embay…