Record of a juvenile of Ahytherium aureum from the Late Pleistocene of the Brazilian Intertropical Region: radiocarbon dating, isotopic palaeoecology and evidence of predation by a Felidae

Abstract

Teeth and bone remains belonging to the juvenile Megalonychidae family were found in Engrunado cave (Nova Redenção, Bahia, Brazil). We propose an index between the mesiodistal/vestibulo‐lingual measurements of caniniforms and molariforms (Imd/vl) to differentiate isolated teeth of Ahytherium aureum and Australonyx aquae, and based on this index, we suggest that the fossil material belonged to A. aureum. The diaphysis of the right humerus of A. aureum presents biogenic marks assigned to the ichnospecies Nihilichnus nihilicus, suggesting dietary interactions and potential predation by a large felid. Radiocarbon dating and carbon and oxygen isotopic analyses suggest that this individual lived in the region between 36 181 and 41 094 Cal yr bp, feeding on C3 plant resources (fruit and leaves) in a low‐density forest. The revision of radiocarbon dating and carbon and oxygen isotopes for some species found in the Engrunado cave and in the nearby Marota cave enables a climate reconstruction and indicates the maintenance of a forested environment in the region between 15 and 40 kyr.