On early-Holocene moisture and small-mammal histories in the Bonneville basin, Western United States

Schmitt, David; Lupo, Karen D.

doi:10.1177/0959683617729453

Cited by 8 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 45 publications

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“…Temporal changes in the compositions of such deposits – specifically, changes in the relative abundances of different taxa – may reflect modifications to surrounding habitats and, by extension, the climatic conditions shaping those landscapes during the period when samples were deposited (e.g. Andrews, 1995; Avery, 2007; Schmitt and Lupo, 2017). When coupled with information regarding the ecological requirements of the taxa in question, such analyses can be used to draw more specific inferences regarding the nature and direction of apparent environmental changes (e.g.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dramatic recent changes in small mammal assemblages from Northern Patagonia: A caution for paleoenvironmental reconstructions

2020

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Temporal differences in fossil assemblages of small mammals can generate important insights into associated environmental conditions. Moreover, by including modern assemblages in such comparisons, it may also be possible to identify the effects of recent human colonization on mammal communities and their habitats. To explore potential signals of European colonization in northwestern Patagonia, we compared fossil and modern assemblages of small mammals from two newly characterized paleontological sites in the Limay Valley region of Río Negro Province, Argentina. The material analyzed consisted of 18 species of small-bodied terrestrial mammals identified from a sample of 27,992 specimens. Fossil assemblages dating from 6453 to 1002 calibrated years before present were relatively stable in taxonomic composition and displayed only minor differences in relative species abundances. In contrast, the modern assemblages examined were clearly distinct, containing a different suite of numerically dominant taxa and lacking three previously abundant grassland species that are presumed to have gone extinct in the vicinity of our study sites. We suggest that these changes reflect substantial post-colonization modifications of surrounding landscapes, including establishment of pine plantations, changes in fire regimes, and introductions of livestock and invasive species of plants. If correct, this supposition raises important concerns regarding the use of modern assemblages as a baseline for reconstructing paleoenvironmental conditions. To avoid potential misinterpretations associated with the use of modern faunal assemblages, we suggest two potential alternative strategies for inferring temporal changes in environmental conditions.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dramatic recent changes in small mammal assemblages from Northern Patagonia: A caution for paleoenvironmental reconstructions

2020

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“…Although evidence shows that the eastern Great Basin was dominated by arid climatic conditions during the Pleistocene–Holocene transition (Rhode, 2016; Thompson et al, 2016), several localities within the region, including the ORB inland delta of central Utah, show the persistence of wetland ecosystems during this time as well (Madsen et al, 2015; Oviatt et al, 2015; Schmitt and Lupo, 2018). One potential explanation for this discrepancy is that lowland wetlands in the Bonneville basin persisted due to the slow discharge of piedmont aquifers with elevated water tables due to infiltration of Lake Bonneville water earlier in the late Pleistocene (Oviatt et al, 2015; Schmitt and Lupo, 2018). The persistence of mesic-adapted mammal communities at many suspected locations of spring discharge provides support for this hypothesis (Schmitt and Lupo, 2018), although the extent of such discharge has not yet been quantified.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…One potential explanation for this discrepancy is that lowland wetlands in the Bonneville basin persisted due to the slow discharge of piedmont aquifers with elevated water tables due to infiltration of Lake Bonneville water earlier in the late Pleistocene (Oviatt et al, 2015; Schmitt and Lupo, 2018). The persistence of mesic-adapted mammal communities at many suspected locations of spring discharge provides support for this hypothesis (Schmitt and Lupo, 2018), although the extent of such discharge has not yet been quantified.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For the ORB inland delta, however, discharge of old Lake Bonneville water from piedmont aquifers was probably not the provenance of ground water reaching the area. Although wetlands and the human occupation of the ORB inland delta are coincident with putative discharge of old Lake Bonneville ground water elsewhere in the eastern Great Basin (Oviatt et al, 2015; Schmitt and Lupo, 2018), ground water reaching the ORB inland delta appears to have come primarily from the Sevier basin (Madsen et al, 2015). The radiogenic 87-strontium and stable 86-strontium isotopic ratio ( 87 Sr/ 86 Sr) data for mollusk shells from ORB inland delta channels postdating the regression of Lake Gunnison (Rhode and Louderback, 2015) have values similar to those of Lake Gunnison mollusks (Hart et al, 2004), suggesting that ground water reaching the area originated in the Sevier basin.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Water Provenance at the Old River Bed Inland Delta and Ground Water Flow from the Sevier Basin of Central Utah during the Pleistocene-Holocene Transition

et al. 2020

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To ascertain the provenance of water reaching wetlands in an area sustaining a population of Pleistocene–Holocene foragers, 87-strontium/86-strontium isotopic ratios (87Sr/86Sr) of mollusks from channels of the Old River Bed inland delta of central Utah were measured. Potential provenances examined included overflow from Pleistocene–Holocene Lake Gunnison, ground water flow from the Sevier basin, ground water discharge from piedmont aquifers infiltrated by Lake Bonneville, and ground waters from local regional aquifers. Old River Bed inland delta channels active from ~13.2 cal ka BP until ~11.2 cal ka BP have 87Sr/86Sr values of 0.70930–0.71049 that are consistent with water sourced from Lake Gunnison in the Sevier basin. Inland delta channels active from ~11.2 cal ka BP until shortly after ~9.3 cal ka BP have 87Sr/86Sr values of 0.70977–0.71033, suggesting ground water flowed from the Sevier basin during the early Holocene. Ratios of 87Sr/86Sr did not match known values for Lake Bonneville, but the youngest Old River Bed inland delta channel system has an 87Sr/86Sr ratio consistent with a local ground water source, perhaps Government Creek. Consistent ground water discharge may explain the persistence of foragers in the region despite the increasingly arid climate of the Great Basin.

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“…Because their data are bound by the Gunnison values, Rhode and Louderback (2015) and Bradbury et al (2020) ruled out both Sr influx from more radiogenic northern water sources (Gilbert-episode lake; Oviatt, 2014) and discharge from mountain and piedmont aquifers recharged during Lake Bonneville times (Oviatt et al, 2015; Schmitt and Lupo, 2018), respectively. Their Sr data as well as ours, however, do not rule out either of these as contributors to the waters of the ORBD (as well as not ruling out radiogenic spring contributions; see Hart et al, 2004; Bradbury et al, 2020).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Paleo-Lake and wetland paleoecology associated with human use of the distal Old River Bed Delta at the Pleistocene-Holocene transition in the Bonneville Basin, Utah, USA

et al. 2021

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Mollusk and ostracode assemblages from the distal Old River Bed delta (ORBD) contribute to our understanding of the Lake Bonneville basin Pleistocene-Holocene transition (PHT) wetland and human presence on the ORBD (ca. 13,000–7500 cal yr BP). Located on U.S. Air Force-managed lands of the Great Salt Lake Desert (GSLD) in western Utah, USA, the area provided 30 samples from 12 localities. The biological assemblages and the potential water sources using 87Sr/86Sr analyses showed wetland expansion and contraction across the PHT, including the Younger-Dryas Chronozone (YDC). The record reflects cold, freshwater conditions, which is uncharacteristic of the Great Salt Lake Desert, after recession of Lake Bonneville. Lymnaea stagnalis jugularis, Cytherissa lacustris, and possibly Candona sp. cf. C. adunca, an endemic and extinct species only reported from Lake Bonneville, suggest cold-water environments. Between 13,000–12,400 cal yr BP, a shallow lake formed, referred to as the Old River Bed delta lake, fed by Lake Gunnison, as shown by 87Sr/86Sr ratios of 0.71024–0.71063 in mollusk fossils collected at the ORBD, characteristic of the Sevier basin. These findings add paleoenvironmental context to the long-term use of the ORBD by humans in constantly changing wetland habitats between 13,000–9500 cal yr BP.

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On early-Holocene moisture and small-mammal histories in the Bonneville basin, Western United States

Cited by 8 publications

References 45 publications

Dramatic recent changes in small mammal assemblages from Northern Patagonia: A caution for paleoenvironmental reconstructions

Dramatic recent changes in small mammal assemblages from Northern Patagonia: A caution for paleoenvironmental reconstructions

Water Provenance at the Old River Bed Inland Delta and Ground Water Flow from the Sevier Basin of Central Utah during the Pleistocene-Holocene Transition

A Paleo-Lake and wetland paleoecology associated with human use of the distal Old River Bed Delta at the Pleistocene-Holocene transition in the Bonneville Basin, Utah, USA

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