Mid-Late Pleistocene Neanderthal landscapes in southern Italy: Paleoecological contributions of the avian assemblage from Grotta del Cavallo, Apulia, southern Italy

Carrera, Lisa; Scarponi, Daniele; Martini, Fabio; Sarti, Lucia; Pavia, Marco

doi:10.1016/j.palaeo.2021.110256

Cited by 6 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 63 publications

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“…In that study, the birds inferred a different component of the paleoenvironment (grasslands, wetlands) with respect to reptiles and small mammals (coniferous and oak forest). Other recent studies where birds provide qualitative paleoenvironmental information are for North America [73], the Neotropics [74][75][76], Europe [77][78][79], and South Africa [80].…”

Section: Paleoclimatic Inferences Between Vertebrate Groupsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Paleoclimatic Reconstruction Based on the Late Pleistocene San Josecito Cave Stratum 720 Fauna Using Fossil Mammals, Reptiles, and Birds

et al. 2023

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Advances in technology have equipped paleobiologists with new analytical tools to assess the fossil record. The functional traits of vertebrates have been used to infer paleoenvironmental conditions. In Quaternary deposits, birds are the second-most-studied group after mammals. They are considered a poor paleoambiental proxy because their high vagility and phenotypic plasticity allow them to respond more effectively to climate change. Investigating multiple groups is important, but it is not often attempted. Biogeographical and climatic niche information concerning small mammals, reptiles, and birds have been used to infer the paleoclimatic conditions present during the Late Pleistocene at San Josecito Cave (~28,000 14C years BP), Mexico. Warmer and dryer conditions are inferred with respect to the present. The use of all of the groups of small vertebrates is recommended because they represent an assemblage of species that have gone through a series of environmental filters in the past. Individually, different vertebrate groups provide different paleoclimatic information. Birds are a good proxy for inferring paleoprecipitation but not paleotemperature. Together, reptiles and small mammals are a good proxy for inferring paleoprecipitation and paleotemperature, but reptiles alone are a bad proxy, and mammals alone are a good proxy for inferring paleotemperature and precipitation. The current paleoclimatic results coupled with those of a previous vegetation structure analysis indicate the presence of non-analog paleoenvironmental conditions during the Late Pleistocene in the San Josecito Cave area. This situation would explain the presence of a disharmonious fauna and the extinction of several taxa when these conditions later disappeared and do not reappear again.

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Section: Paleoclimatic Inferences Between Vertebrate Groupsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Paleoclimatic Reconstruction Based on the Late Pleistocene San Josecito Cave Stratum 720 Fauna Using Fossil Mammals, Reptiles, and Birds

et al. 2023

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“…The alternation of Pleistocene glacial and interglacial periods caused cyclic expansions, contractions and shifts of geographic ranges of species 1 , including bird species, shaping their current genetic structure and diversity 2 – 7 . As for land-based ecosystems, these range shifts are linked to latitudinal and altitudinal shift of biomes and vegetation zones in response to climate oscillations 8 – 10 . For instance, during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM: 19–26,500 years ago) 11 , Mediterranean Europe was a climatic refugia for warm-adapted bird species, whereas the cold-adapted species were more widespread 12 – 14 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Birds adapted to cold conditions show greater changes in range size related to past climatic oscillations than temperate birds

Carrera

Pavia

Varela

2022

Sci Rep

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Investigation of ecological responses of species to past climate oscillations provides crucial information to understand the effects of global warming. In this work, we investigated how past climate changes affected the distribution of six bird species with different climatic requirements and migratory behaviours in the Western Palearctic and in Africa. Species Distribution Models and Marine Isotopic Stage (MIS) 2 fossil occurrences of selected species were employed to evaluate the relation between changes in range size and species climatic tolerances. The Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) range predictions, generally well supported by the MIS 2 fossil occurrences, suggest that cold-dwelling species considerably expanded their distribution in the LGM, experiencing more pronounced net changes in range size compared to temperate species. Overall, the thermal niche proves to be a key ecological trait for explaining the impact of climate change in species distributions. Thermal niche is linked to range size variations due to climatic oscillations, with cold-adapted species currently suffering a more striking range reduction compared to temperate species. This work also supports the persistence of Afro-Palearctic migrations during the LGM due to the presence of climatically suitable wintering areas in Africa even during glacial maxima.

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Late Pleistocene of Europe

Jones,

Andrews

2025

Encyclopedia of Quaternary Science

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Mid-Late Pleistocene Neanderthal landscapes in southern Italy: Paleoecological contributions of the avian assemblage from Grotta del Cavallo, Apulia, southern Italy

Cited by 6 publications

References 63 publications

Paleoclimatic Reconstruction Based on the Late Pleistocene San Josecito Cave Stratum 720 Fauna Using Fossil Mammals, Reptiles, and Birds

Paleoclimatic Reconstruction Based on the Late Pleistocene San Josecito Cave Stratum 720 Fauna Using Fossil Mammals, Reptiles, and Birds

Birds adapted to cold conditions show greater changes in range size related to past climatic oscillations than temperate birds

Late Pleistocene of Europe

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