Biologic and climatic signals in the oxygen isotopic composition of Eocene-Oligocene equid enamel phosphate

Bryant, J. Daniel; Froelich, Philip N.; Showers, William J.; Genna, Bernard

doi:10.1016/s0031-0182(96)00071-5

Cited by 138 publications

(86 citation statements)

References 44 publications

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“…Because the timing of tooth growth is fixed within a species, inter-individual variability in the δ 18 O sequences retrieved from enamel ( Figure 1c) is related to variability in the season of birth (Bryant et al, 1996;Fricke and O'Neil, 1996). This variability may be described through the observation of the position of the optimum value of the δ 18 O cycle in the tooth crown (Balasse et al, 2003).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Animal Board Invited Review: Sheep birth distribution in past herds: a review for prehistoric Europe (6th to 3rd millennia BC)

Balasse

Tresset

Bălășescu³

et al. 2017

Animal

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In temperate latitudes sheep have a seasonal reproductive behaviour, which imposes strong constraints on husbandry in terms of work organization and availability of animal products. During the last 50 years, researchers have focused on understanding the mechanisms driving small ruminants' reproduction cycles and finding ways to control them. This characteristic is inherited from their wild ancestor. However, the history of its evolution over the 10 millennia that separates present day European sheep from their Near Eastern ancestors' remains to be written. This perspective echoes archaeologists' current attempts at reconstructing ancient pastoral societies' socio-economical organization. Information related to birth seasonality may be retrieved directly from archaeological sheep teeth. The methodology consists of reconstructing the seasonal cycle record in sheep molars, through sequential analysis of the stable oxygen isotope composition (δ 18 O) of enamel. Because the timing of tooth development is fixed within a species, inter-individual variability in this parameter reflects birth seasonality. A review of the data obtained from 10 European archaeological sites dated from the 6th to the 3rd millennia BC is provided. The results demonstrate a restricted breeding season for sheep: births occurred over a period of 3 to 4 months, from late winter to early summer at latitudes 43°N to 48°N, while a later onset was observed at a higher latitude (59°N). All conclusions concurred with currently held expectations based on present day sheep physiology, which, aside from the historical significance, contributes to the reinforcing of the methodological basis of the approach. Further study in this area will permit regional variability attributable to technical choices, within global schemes, to be fully reported.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Animal Board Invited Review: Sheep birth distribution in past herds: a review for prehistoric Europe (6th to 3rd millennia BC)

Balasse

Tresset

Bălășescu³

et al. 2017

Animal

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“…Based on this result, they showed that the most equid individuals were born in spring for Miocene equids from Nebraska (Bryant et al, 1996a) and Eocene-Oligocene equids from Wyoming and South Dakota (Bryant et al, 1996b). Fricke and O'Neil (1996) observed significant differences in d…”

Section: Measured Dmentioning

confidence: 95%

Reconstruction of breastfeeding and weaning practices using stable isotope and trace element analyses: A review

Tsutaya

Yoneda

2014

American J Phys Anthropol

196

188

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Biogeochemical methods using stable isotopes and trace elements have been increasingly developed and applied to reconstruct modern and ancient breastfeeding and weaning practices of mammals, including humans, because they offer direct proxies for the dietary intake of subadults. Carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen isotopes have been used to evaluate breast milk lipid, protein, and water intake, respectively. Carbon and sulfur isotopes have been used to estimate the content of weaning foods. The elemental concentrations of Sr and Ba in subadult tissues differ because of the dietary change during the weaning process. For analyses, various tissues have been used, such as hair, nail, blood, and feces for modern mammals and bone and teeth for ancient ones. Of these, trace element analysis of tooth enamel offers a good opportunity for the reconstruction of breastfeeding and weaning practices of the more distant past at finer resolution, although further understanding of the metabolism of trace elements is necessary. There are various tissue-and element-specific advantages and disadvantages, and a combination of different proxies can illuminate practices from various viewpoints. Finally, applying the geochemical reconstruction of breastfeeding and weaning practices to human ecology, primatology, and paleoanthropology is important; basic studies of the underlying physiological mechanisms and technical improvements in the analyses will further highlight avenues for future research. Yrbk Phys Anthropol 156:2-21, 2015. V C 2014 American Association of Physical AnthropologistsThe reconstruction of breastfeeding and weaning practices (BWPs) of ancient human and other mammalian species is one of the most important fields in anthropology, archaeology, evolutionary biology, and history. Infant feeding practices affect the overall health of the population because diet, health status, and growth at a young age have profound effects on an individual's later life (Dettwyler and Fishman, 1992;Katzenberg et al., 1996;WHO, 1998WHO, , 2009Lewis, 2007). Breastfeeding and weaning practices can be viewed from the evolutionary perspectives of life history theory, parental investment, child development, social system, and reproductive strat-

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“…This isotopic signature may be derived from either the phosphate or carbonate compartments of mammalian bioapatite (15). The recovery of phosphate derived δ 18 O was developed originally to access palaeoclimate temperature data stored in fossil mammal teeth (16)(17)(18)(19), whilst other studies have employed carbonate derived δ 18 O (20,21). The drinking water intake of mammals contains δ 18 O values which are derived from average precipitation (rain water), which in turn contributes to ground water values (22,23).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mapping Human Movement using Stable Oxygen Isotopic Ratio Mass Spectrometry: Potential Application to Forensic Science Demonstrated by a Modern Horse-Human Study

Bell¹,

Lee‐Thorp

Dobney

2006

Canadian Society of Forensic Science Journal

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The utility of stable oxygen isotope analysis for demonstrating human migration has been developed and demonstrated on archaeological human populations. The application of this approach to tracking human movement has seldom been applied within forensic science. This paper gives results from a stable oxygen isotope assessment of extant modern human and horse enamel ␦ 18 O values recovered from tooth enamel. The human and horses were all constrained to known geographic locales for the period of tooth formation and compared to UK and global precipitation values for ␦ 18 O. It was found that human and horse values track one another and horse can be used with some confidence as a human proxy. UK values were constrained geographically and outlier values to the UK were identified between Iceland and the Sudan. For application within the realm of forensic science more research is required to understand the regionalized contribution of hydrology to a catchment and the potentially confounding contribution of mixed water sources. However, as a tool to track human movement within forensics there is clear utility.

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Biologic and climatic signals in the oxygen isotopic composition of Eocene-Oligocene equid enamel phosphate

Cited by 138 publications

References 44 publications

Animal Board Invited Review: Sheep birth distribution in past herds: a review for prehistoric Europe (6th to 3rd millennia BC)

Animal Board Invited Review: Sheep birth distribution in past herds: a review for prehistoric Europe (6th to 3rd millennia BC)

Reconstruction of breastfeeding and weaning practices using stable isotope and trace element analyses: A review

Mapping Human Movement using Stable Oxygen Isotopic Ratio Mass Spectrometry: Potential Application to Forensic Science Demonstrated by a Modern Horse-Human Study

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