The use of protected natural areas in palaeoecological analyses: assumptions, limitations and application

Louys, Julien; Travouillon, Kenny J.; Bassarova, Mina; Tong, Haowen

doi:10.1016/j.jas.2009.06.012

Cited by 20 publications

(30 citation statements)

References 32 publications

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“…Species used in this analysis are listed in Appendix S1 in the Supporting Information. The geographical positions of the natural protected areas can be found in Louys et al. (2009).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Furthermore, because SE Asia has suffered relatively few Pleistocene extinctions, modern faunal communities provide good comparative models for extinct ones. However, these types of analyses are subject to taphonomic limitations (Soligo & Andrews, 2005) as well as requiring the preservation of a minimum number of species (Louys et al. , 2009).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…, 2009). For example, Louys et al. (2009) calculated that to differentiate with confidence between closed and mixed habitats, a site must contain at least 32 species, between mixed and open at least 12 species, and between closed and open at least eight species.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Unfortunately, the target of 32 species is achieved in only a few sites in SE Asia. Nonetheless, classifications based on fewer species can provide an indication of environments present, especially when they are placed within a larger palaeoecological context (Louys et al. , 2009).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Palaeoecology of Southeast Asian megafauna‐bearing sites from the Pleistocene and a review of environmental changes in the region

Louys

Meijaard

2010

Journal of Biogeography

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100

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Aim To reconstruct the palaeoenvironments of megafauna‐bearing sites from Pleistocene Southeast Asia, and to describe general environmental changes in the region. Location Indochina and Sundaland, including Myanmar, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, the Malay Peninsula, Borneo, Sumatra and Java. Methods This study reconstructs the habitat types of 25 Pleistocene sites in Southeast Asia through a synecological (community‐based) method. This method specifically targets medium‐ and large‐bodied mammals, and ecovariables that could be directly assessed from species lists were chosen. The methods allow the reconstruction of fossil sites as closed (continuous tree cover), mixed (heterogeneous tree cover) and open (very limited to no tree cover) through discriminant functions analysis of community guild structure. Results Four Pleistocene sites can confidently be assigned to one of the three habitat types. Tam Hang (south), a Middle Pleistocene site from Laos, is classified as mixed. Ban Fa Suai, a Middle Pleistocene site from Thailand, is also classified as mixed. Trinil, a Middle Pleistocene site from Java, is classified as open. Lastly, Hang Hum II, a Late Pleistocene site from Vietnam, is classified as open. Insufficient species are present in the fossil faunas of remaining sites to allow statistically confident habitat assignment. Nevertheless, conditional habitat assignments can be achieved, and these are largely congruent with other palaeoenvironmental evidence. Main conclusions Medium‐ and large‐bodied mammals are the most frequently recovered mammals from Pleistocene sites in Southeast Asia. Previous palaeoenvironmental reconstructions of these sites have been hampered by this body size bias, as well as by limited site and faunal descriptions. However, our analysis demonstrates that reconstructions can still be achieved for megafauna‐bearing sites in the region. The reconstructions suggest that through much of the Pleistocene, Southeast Asia had significant areas of mixed habitats, and that the widespread distribution of rain forests, such as found today, was a relatively rare phenomenon.

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“…Species used in this analysis are listed in Appendix S1 in the Supporting Information. The geographical positions of the natural protected areas can be found in Louys et al. (2009).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Palaeoecology of Southeast Asian megafauna‐bearing sites from the Pleistocene and a review of environmental changes in the region

Louys

Meijaard

2010

Journal of Biogeography

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100

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“…These categorisations are certainly useful, but they can be subjective with regards to researcher interpretations of vegetation and habitats. Similar limitations have been identified explicitly for community-based palaeoecological reconstructions (Louys et al 2009(Louys et al , 2011. We use a Geographic Information System (GIS) based methodology to simplify specimen ecological classification based on geographic distribution of species (cf.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Cats in the forest: predicting habitat adaptations from humerus morphometry in extant and fossil Felidae (Carnivora)

et al. 2013

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Mammalian carnivores are rarely incorporated in paleoenvironmental reconstructions, largely because of their rarity within the fossil record. However, multivariate statistical modeling can be successfully used to quantify specific anatomical features as environmental predictors. Here we explore morphological variability of the humerus in a closely related group of predators (Felidae) to investigate the relationship between morphometric descriptors and habitat categories. We analyze linear measurements of the humerus in three different morphometric combinations (log-transformed, size-free, and ratio), and explore four distinct ways of categorizing habitat adaptations. Open, Mixed, and Closed categories are defined according to criteria based on traditional descriptions of species, distributions, and biome occupancy. Extensive exploratory work is presented using linear discriminant analyses and several fossils are included to provide paleoecological reconstructions.We found no significant differences in the predictive power of distinct morphometric descriptors or habitat criteria, although sample splitting into small and large cat guilds greatly improves the stability of the models. Significant insights emerge for three long-canine cats: Smilodon populator, Paramachairodus orientalis, and Dinofelis sp. from Olduvai Gorge (East Africa). S. populator and P. orientalis are both predicted to have been closed-habitat adapted taxa. The false “sabertooth” Dinofelis sp. from Olduvai Gorge is predicted to be adapted to mixed habitat. The application of felid humerus ecomorphology to the carnivoran record of Olduvai Gorge shows that the older stratigraphic levels (Bed I, 1.99–1.79 Ma) included a broader range of environments than Beds II or V, where there is an abundance of cats adapted to open environments.

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Mammals as Palaeoenvironmental Indicators

Louys¹,

O’Regan²

2023

Handbook of Archaeological Sciences

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The use of protected natural areas in palaeoecological analyses: assumptions, limitations and application

Cited by 20 publications

References 32 publications

Palaeoecology of Southeast Asian megafauna‐bearing sites from the Pleistocene and a review of environmental changes in the region

Palaeoecology of Southeast Asian megafauna‐bearing sites from the Pleistocene and a review of environmental changes in the region

Cats in the forest: predicting habitat adaptations from humerus morphometry in extant and fossil Felidae (Carnivora)

Mammals as Palaeoenvironmental Indicators

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