Isotope Ecology

Pseudomonas fluorescens CHA0 maintains carbon delivery to Fusarium graminearum-infected roots and prevents reduction in biomass of barley shoots through …

by Alexandre Jousset

Nitrogen isotope analyses of reindeer (Rangifer tarandus), 45,000 BP to 9,000 BP: Palaeoenvironmental reconstructions

by Rhiannon Stevens

Molybdenum isotope records as a potential new proxy for paleoceanography

by Chris Siebert

Where the wild things are: aurochs and cattle in England

by Tony Lynch

Antiquity, 2008, 82(318), 1025-1039

The aurochs was a type of wild cattle not extinct in Europe until the mid-second millennium BC- so they must have... more The aurochs was a type of wild cattle not extinct in Europe until the mid-second millennium BC- so they must have co-existed for centuries with the domestic cattle which were to supplant it. Here the authors use stable isotope analysis to show what form that co-existence took: the domestic cattle grazing on the pasture, and the aurochs lurking in the forests and wet places.

Towards an Isotopic Ecology of Herbivory in the Puna Ecosystem: New Results and Patterns on Lama glama

by Celeste Samec

Trophic structure and climatic information from isotopic signatures in Pleistocene cave fauna of southern England

by Herve Bocherens

Endangered species, archaeology, and stable isotopes: huemul (Hippocamelus bisulcus) isotopic ecology in central-western Patagonia (South America)

by Ramiro Barberena

R. BARBERENA, C. MÉNDEZ, F. MENA, O. REYES
(J. Arc. Sc. 2011)

The management and conservation of animal species should be based upon a long-term analysis that considers its... more The management and conservation of animal species should be based upon a long-term analysis that considers its geographical distribution and feeding patterns. The study of carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes on skeletal remains provides a quantitative approach to the paleodietary reconstructions and constitutes a potent tool for comparing behavioral aspects of the fauna. In this paper we present the first set of isotopic values for modern and archaeological samples of Huemul (Hippocamelus bisulcus) from the forests of Central-western Patagonia, Chile. Contrary to initial expectations, our analysis indicates that there is no evidence of an important incidence of the canopy effect on the δ13Ccollagen values, which we suggest is due to an ecological selection that drives the huemul to focus its predation on open sectors within the forest. On the other hand, a wide range of δ15Ncollagen values for huemul was verified. This could reflect the N impoverishment of the forest soils and provide an interesting ecological indicator. The long-term information offered by the archaeological record provides the necessary context for decision-making conducive towards the preservation of Hippocamelus bisulcus in Patagonia.

Guanaco (Lama guanicoe) isotopic ecology in southern South America: spatial and temporal tendencies, and archaeological implications

by Ramiro Barberena

R. BARBERENA, A.F. ZANGRANDO, A.F. GIL, G.A. MARTINEZ, G.G. POLITIS, L.A. BORRERO, G.A. NEME
(J. Arc. Sc. 2009)

We synthesize and discuss available isotopic data on Holocene guanaco samples from southern South America, extending... more We synthesize and discuss available isotopic data on Holocene guanaco samples from southern South America, extending from Tierra del Fuego Island to northern Patagonia and the Pampean region. We evaluate temporal and spatial tendencies on the basis of 91 samples (mainly based on δ13Ccollagen values), presenting implications for paleodietary research in archaeology. We conclude that there are no strong correlations with latitude in the macro-spatial scale, while there is a set of interesting patterns at smaller regional scales. These patterns lead us to evaluate the role of ecologic and topographic variables (e.g. canopy effect, variations in altitude, ecotones) in structuring isotopic variability. Finally, on the basis of the present analysis we suggest a number of hypotheses and perspectives for the use of stable isotopes as geographic tracers of guanaco distribution in the past, and specific implications for the paleodietary study of human samples.