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Perlman RF, Beehner JC, Koenig A, Lu A. Consumption of underground storage organs is associated with improved energetic status in a graminivorous primate. J Hum Evol 2024; 192:103545. [PMID: 38843698 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2024.103545] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2023] [Revised: 04/07/2024] [Accepted: 04/14/2024] [Indexed: 06/23/2024]
Abstract
Early hominin species likely had access to open, grassy habitats where periodic reliance on underground storage organs (USOs) is hypothesized to have played a crucial dietary role. As the only living graminivorous primate today, geladas (Theropithecus gelada) provide a unique perspective for understanding the energetic consequences of seasonal consumption of USOs. Geladas rely heavily on above-ground grasses throughout the year, but when grass is seasonally less available, they feed more on USOs. To assess whether USOs fit the definition of fallback foods (i.e., foods that are difficult to access, less preferred, or both), we examined how foraging effort (measured via time spent feeding and moving) and energetic status (measured via urinary C-peptide) fluctuated during seasonal dietary changes in a population of wild geladas in the Simien Mountains National Park, Ethiopia. If, indeed, USOs are fallback foods, we predicted an increase in foraging effort and a decline in energetic status during the dry season, when geladas rely more heavily on USOs. We collected behavioral and physiological data from 13 adult gelada males across a 13-month period. As expected, we found that male geladas spent more time moving during drier months. However, counter to the hypothesis that USOs are fallback foods in geladas, urinary C-peptide concentrations were significantly higher during the dry season. We suggest that USOs may represent an energy-rich food item for geladas, but it remains unclear why USOs are not consumed year-round. Future work is needed to better understand seasonal variation in the availability, nutrient content, and digestibility of USOs. However, results indicate that exploiting USOs seasonally could have been a valuable dietary strategy for the evolutionary success of early hominins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rachel F Perlman
- Interdepartmental Doctoral Program in Anthropological Sciences, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794-4364, USA; Program for Research Initiatives in Science & Math, John Jay College of Criminal Justice, City University of New York, New York, NY 10019, USA.
| | - Jacinta C Beehner
- Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1043, USA; Department of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1107, USA
| | - Andreas Koenig
- Interdepartmental Doctoral Program in Anthropological Sciences, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794-4364, USA; Department of Anthropology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794-4364, USA
| | - Amy Lu
- Interdepartmental Doctoral Program in Anthropological Sciences, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794-4364, USA; Department of Anthropology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794-4364, USA.
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2
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Goldfarb G, Sela Y. The Ideal Diet for Humans to Sustainably Feed the Growing Population - Review, Meta-Analyses, and Policies for Change. F1000Res 2023; 10:1135. [PMID: 37928317 PMCID: PMC10623543 DOI: 10.12688/f1000research.73470.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/26/2023] [Indexed: 11/07/2023] Open
Abstract
INTRODUCTION As of now, no study has combined research from different sciences to determine the most suitable diet for humans. This issue is urgent due to the predicted population growth, the effect of this on the environment, and the deterioration of human health and associated costs. METHODS A literature review determined whether an optimal diet for humans exists and what such a diet is, followed by six meta-analyses. The standard criteria for conducting meta-analyses of observational studies were followed. A review of literature reporting Hazard Ratios with a 95% confidence interval for red meat intake, dairy intake, plant-based diet, fiber intake, and serum IGF-1 levels were extracted to calculate effect sizes. RESULTS Results calculated using NCSS software show that high meat consumption increases mortality probability by 18% on average and increases diabetes risk by 50%. Plant-based and high-fiber diets decrease mortality by 15% and 20% respectively ( p < .001). Plant-based diets decreased diabetes risk by 27%, and dairy consumption (measured by increased IGF-1 levels) increased cancer probability by 48% ( p < 0.01). A vegetarian or Mediterranean diet was not found to decrease the probability of heart disease. A vegetarian diet can be healthy or not, depending on the foods consumed. A Mediterranean diet with high quantities of meat and dairy products will not produce the health effects desired. The main limitations of the study were that observational studies were heterogeneous and limited by potential confounders. DISCUSSION The literature and meta-analyses point to an optimal diet for humans that has followed our species from the beginnings of humankind. The optimal diet is a whole food, high fiber, low-fat, 90+% plant-based diet. This diet allowed humans to become the most developed species on Earth. To ensure people's nutritional needs are met healthily and sustainably, governmental dietary interventions are necessary.
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Affiliation(s)
- Galit Goldfarb
- Nutrition, OUS University, The Royal Academy of Economics and Technology, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Yaron Sela
- Nutrition, OUS University, The Royal Academy of Economics and Technology, Zürich, Switzerland
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3
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Morse PE, Pampush JD, Kay RF. Dental topography of the Oligocene anthropoids Aegyptopithecus zeuxis and Apidium phiomense: Paleodietary insights from analysis of wear series. J Hum Evol 2023; 180:103387. [PMID: 37245335 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2023.103387] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/18/2022] [Revised: 04/19/2023] [Accepted: 04/21/2023] [Indexed: 05/30/2023]
Abstract
Fossil primate dietary inference is enhanced when ascertained through multiple, distinct proxies. Dental topography can be used to assess changes in occlusal morphology with macrowear, providing insight on tooth use and function across the lifespans of individuals. We measured convex Dirichlet normal energy-a dental topography metric reflecting occlusal sharpness of features such as cusps and crests-in macrowear series of the second mandibular molars of two African anthropoid taxa from ∼30 Ma (Aegyptopithecus zeuxis and Apidium phiomense). Wear was quantified via three proxies: occlusal dentine exposure, inverse relief index, and inverse occlusal relief. The same measurements were calculated on macrowear series of four extant platyrrhine taxa (Alouatta, Ateles, Plecturocebus, and Sapajus apella) to provide an analogical framework for dietary inference in the fossil taxa. We predicted that Ae. zeuxis and Ap. phiomense would show similar patterns in topographic change with wear to one another and to extant platyrrhine frugivores like Ateles and Plecturocebus. The fossil taxa have similar distributions of convex Dirichlet normal energy to one another, and high amounts of concave Dirichlet normal energy 'noise' in unworn molars-a pattern shared with extant hominids that may distort dietary interpretations. Inverse relief index was the most useful wear proxy for comparison among the taxa in this study which possess disparate enamel thicknesses. Contrary to expectations, Ae. zeuxis and Ap. phiomense both resemble S. apella in exhibiting an initial decline in convex Dirichlet normal energy followed by an increase at the latest stages of wear as measured by inverse relief index, lending support to previous suggestions that hard-object feeding played a role in their dietary ecology. Based on these results and previous analyses of molar shearing quotients, microwear, and enamel microstructure, we suggest that Ae. zeuxis had a pitheciine-like strategy of seed predation, whereas Ap. phiomense potentially consumed berry-like compound fruits with hard seeds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paul E Morse
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO 80045, USA; Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA.
| | - James D Pampush
- Department of Exercise Science, High Point University, High Point, NC 27260, USA; Department of Physician Assistant Studies, High Point University, High Point, NC 27260, USA
| | - Richard F Kay
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA; Division of Earth and Climate Sciences, Nicholas School, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
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4
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O'Brien K, Hebdon N, Faith JT. Paleoecological evidence for environmental specialization in Paranthropus boisei compared to early Homo. J Hum Evol 2023; 177:103325. [PMID: 36805971 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2023.103325] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2022] [Revised: 01/15/2023] [Accepted: 01/16/2023] [Indexed: 02/18/2023]
Abstract
Since the discovery of Paranthropus boisei alongside early Homo at Olduvai Gorge and East Turkana, paleoanthropologists have attempted to understand the different evolutionary paths of these two hominin lineages. Conventional wisdom is that their prolonged phase of sympatry in eastern Africa reflects different adaptive strategies, with early Homo characterized as the ecologically flexible generalist and Paranthropus as the less versatile specialist. If correct, this should imply differences in their use of ancient environments, with early Homo occurring in a broader range of environmental contexts than Paranthropus. This prediction has yet to be subject to rigorous quantitative evaluation. In this study, we use the 2.0-1.4 Ma fossil bovid assemblages associated with early Homo and P. boisei at East Turkana (Kenya) to quantify the breadth of their environmental associations. We find that early Homo occurs in faunal assemblages indicative of a broader range of environments than P. boisei. A null model taking sampling into account shows that the broad environmental associations of early Homo are indistinguishable from random, whereas P. boisei is one of just a handful of large mammal taxa from East Turkana that has a narrower range of environmental associations than expected by chance. These results support the characterization of P. boisei as an ecological specialist relative to the more generalist Homo. Moreover, the narrow environmental associations observed of P. boisei, unlike those of almost all other C4 grass-consumers in the Turkana Basin, suggest that it likely did not feed on a spatially widespread C4 resource like the leaves, seeds, or rhizomes of grass.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kaedan O'Brien
- Department of Anthropology, University of Utah, 260 South Central Campus Drive, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA; Natural History Museum of Utah, University of Utah, 301 Wakara Way, Salt Lake City, UT 84108, USA.
| | - Nicholas Hebdon
- Department of Biological Sciences, Chapman University, 1 University Dr, Orange, CA 92866, USA
| | - J Tyler Faith
- Department of Anthropology, University of Utah, 260 South Central Campus Drive, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA; Natural History Museum of Utah, University of Utah, 301 Wakara Way, Salt Lake City, UT 84108, USA; Origins Centre, University of the Witwatersrand, 1 Jan Smuts Avenue, Braamfontein 2000, Johannesburg, South Africa
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5
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Estimates of absolute crown strength and bite force in the lower postcanine dentition of Gigantopithecus blacki. J Hum Evol 2023; 175:103313. [PMID: 36709569 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2022.103313] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2021] [Revised: 12/18/2022] [Accepted: 12/18/2022] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
Abstract
Gigantopithecus blacki is hypothesized to have been capable of processing mechanically challenging foods, which likely required this species to have high dental resistance to fracture and/or large bite force. To test this hypothesis, we used two recently developed approaches to estimate absolute crown strength and bite force of the lower postcanine dentition. Sixteen Gigantopithecus mandibular permanent cheek teeth were scanned by micro-computed tomography. From virtual mesial cross-sections, we measured average enamel thickness and bi-cervical diameter to estimate absolute crown strength, and cuspal enamel thickness and dentine horn angle to estimate bite force. We compared G. blacki with a sample of extant great apes (Pan, Pongo, and Gorilla) and australopiths (Australopithecus anamensis, Australopithecus afarensis, Australopithecus africanus, Paranthropus robustus, and Paranthropus boisei). We also evaluated statistical differences in absolute crown strength and bite force between the premolars and molars for G. blacki. Results reveal that molar crown strength is absolutely greater, and molar bite force absolutely higher, in G. blacki than all other taxa except P. boisei, suggesting that G. blacki molars have exceptionally high resistance to fracture and the ability to generate exceptionally high bite force. In addition, G. blacki premolars have comparable absolute crown strength and larger bite force capabilities compared with its molars, implying possible functional specializations in premolars. The dental specialization of G. blacki could thus represent an adaptation to further facilitate the processing of mechanically challenging foods. While it is currently not possible to determine which types of foods were actually consumed by G. blacki through this study, direct evidence (e.g. dental chipping and microwear) left by the foods eaten by G. blacki could potentially lead to greater insights into its dietary ecology.
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6
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Daujeard C, Prat S. What Are the “Costs and Benefits” of Meat-Eating in Human Evolution? The Challenging Contribution of Behavioral Ecology to Archeology. Front Ecol Evol 2022. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2022.834638] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Despite the omnivorous diet of most human populations, meat foraging gradually increased during the Paleolithic, in parallel with the development of hunting capacities. There is evidence of regular meat consumption by extinct hominins from 2 Ma onward, with the first occurrence prior to 3 Ma in Eastern Africa. The number of sites with cut-marked animal remains and stone tools increased after 2 Ma. In addition, toolkits became increasingly complex, and various, facilitating carcass defleshing and marrow recovery, the removal of quarters of meat to avoid carnivore competition, and allowing the emergence of cooperative (i.e., social) hunting of large herbivores. How can we assess the energy costs and benefits of meat and fat acquisition and consumption for hunter-gatherers in the past, and is it possible to accurately evaluate them? Answering this question would provide a better understanding of extinct hominin land use, food resource management, foraging strategies, and cognitive abilities related to meat and fat acquisition, processing, and consumption. According to the Optimal Foraging Theory (OFT), resources may be chosen primarily on the basis of their efficiency rank in term of calories. But, could other factors, and not only calorific return, prevail in the choice of prey, such as the acquisition of non-food products, like pelts, bone tools or ornaments, or symbolic or traditional uses? Our main goal here is to question the direct application of behavioral ecology data to archeology. For this purpose, we focus on the issue of animal meat and fat consumption in human evolution. We propose a short review of available data from energetics and ethnographic records, and provide examples of several various-sized extant animals, such as elephants, reindeer, or lagomorphs, which were some of the most common preys of Paleolithic hominins.
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7
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Haile-Selassie Y. From Trees to the Ground: The Significance of Australopithecus anamensis in Human Evolution. JOURNAL OF ANTHROPOLOGICAL RESEARCH 2021. [DOI: 10.1086/716743] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
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8
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Berthaume MA, Kramer PA. Anthroengineering: an independent interdisciplinary field. Interface Focus 2021; 11:20200056. [PMID: 34938428 PMCID: PMC8361575 DOI: 10.1098/rsfs.2020.0056] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 07/07/2021] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
In recent decades, funding agencies, institutes and professional bodies have recognized the profound benefits of transdisciplinarity in tackling targeted research questions. However, once questions are answered, the previously abundant support often dissolves. As such, the long-term benefits of these transdisciplinary approaches are never fully achieved. Over the last several decades, the integration of anthropology and engineering through inter- and multidisciplinary work has led to advances in fields such as design, human evolution and medical technologies. The lack of formal recognition, however, of this transdisciplinary approach as a unique entity rather than a useful tool or a subfield makes it difficult for researchers to establish laboratories, secure permanent jobs, fund long-term research programmes and train students in this approach. To facilitate the growth and development and witness the long-term benefits of this approach, we propose the integration of anthropology and engineering be recognized as a new, independent field known as anthroengineering. We present a working definition for anthroengineering and examples of how anthroengineering has been used. We discuss the necessity of recognizing anthroengineering as a unique field and explore potential novel applications. Finally, we discuss the future of anthroengineering, highlighting avenues for moving the field forward.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael A. Berthaume
- Division of Mechanical Engineering and Design, London South Bank University, London SE1 0AA, UK
| | - Patricia Ann Kramer
- Department of Anthropology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195-3100, USA
- Department of Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195-3100, USA
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9
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Berthaume MA, Kupczik K. Molar biomechanical function in South African hominins Australopithecus africanus and Paranthropus robustus. Interface Focus 2021; 11:20200085. [PMID: 34938434 DOI: 10.1098/rsfs.2020.0085] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 06/15/2021] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Diet is a driving force in human evolution. Two species of Plio-Pleistocene hominins, Paranthropus robustus and Australopithecus africanus, have derived craniomandibular and dental morphologies which are often interpreted as P. robustus having a more biomechanically challenging diet. While dietary reconstructions based on dental microwear generally support this, they show extensive dietary overlap between species, and craniomandibular and dental biomechanical analyses can yield contradictory results. Using methods from anthropology and engineering (i.e. anthroengineering), we quantified the molar biomechanical performance of these hominins to investigate possible dietary differences between them. Thirty-one lower second molars were 3D printed and used to fracture gelatine blocks, and Bayesian generalized linear models were used to investigate the relationship between species and tooth wear, size and shape, and biomechanical performance. Our results demonstrate that P. robustus required more force and energy to fracture blocks but had a higher force transmission rate. Considering previous dietary reconstructions, we propose three evolutionary scenarios concerning the dietary ecologies of these hominins. These evolutionary scenarios cannot be reached by investigating morphological differences in isolation, but require combining several lines of evidence. This highlights the need for a holistic approach to reconstructing hominin dietary ecology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael A Berthaume
- Division of Mechanical Engineering and Design, London South Bank University, 103 Borough Road, London SE1 0AA, UK.,Max Planck Weizmann Center for Integrative Archaeology and Anthropology, Max Planck Institute of Evolutionary Anthropology, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Kornelius Kupczik
- Max Planck Weizmann Center for Integrative Archaeology and Anthropology, Max Planck Institute of Evolutionary Anthropology, 04103 Leipzig, Germany.,Department of Human Evolution, Max Planck Institute of Evolutionary Anthropology, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
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10
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A chimpanzee enamel-diet δ 13C enrichment factor and a refined enamel sampling strategy: Implications for dietary reconstructions. J Hum Evol 2021; 159:103062. [PMID: 34536662 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2021.103062] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2020] [Revised: 08/01/2021] [Accepted: 08/01/2021] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
Reconstructing diets from stable carbon isotopic signals in enamel bioapatite requires the application of a δ13C enamel-diet enrichment factor, or the isotopic offset between diet and enamel, which has not been empirically determined for any primate. In this study, an enamel-diet enrichment factor (ε∗enamel-diet) of 11.8 ± 0.3‰ is calculated for chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) at Ngogo in Kibale National Park, Uganda, based on a comprehensive isotopic assessment of previously analyzed dietary plant data and new isotopic analyses of enamel apatite. Different enamel sampling methods are evaluated to determine the potential influence of weaning on isotopic enamel values and dietary interpretations. The new chimpanzee enrichment factor and a sampling strategy that excludes teeth that formed before weaning completion are applied to all known chimpanzee δ13Cenamel data, either previously published or newly derived in this study, resulting in a dietary range of almost 6‰ across all chimpanzees sampled. This new chimpanzee enamel-diet enrichment factor is then used to reassess dietary reconstructions of 12 fossil hominin species whose isotopic enamel signatures have been determined. Results reveal hominin diets that are isotopically more positive than previously reconstructed, highlighting the widespread contribution of 13C-enriched C4/crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM) resources in fossil hominin diets and emphasizing the broad use of these resources during human evolution. These findings stress the importance of ascertaining and employing an appropriate enrichment factor for dietary reconstructions of specific taxa as well as standardizing the sampling protocol for tooth enamel in isotopic paleodietary reconstructions.
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11
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Dental chipping supports lack of hard-object feeding in Paranthropus boisei. J Hum Evol 2021; 156:103015. [PMID: 34038770 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2021.103015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2021] [Revised: 04/27/2021] [Accepted: 04/27/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
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12
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Integrating buccal and occlusal dental microwear with isotope analyses for a complete paleodietary reconstruction of Holocene populations from Hungary. Sci Rep 2021; 11:7034. [PMID: 33782444 PMCID: PMC8007593 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-86369-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/10/2020] [Accepted: 03/09/2021] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Dietary reconstruction is used to make inferences about the subsistence strategies of ancient human populations, but it may also serve as a proxy to characterise their diverse cultural and technological manifestations. Dental microwear and stable isotope analyses have been shown to be successful techniques for paleodietary reconstruction of ancient populations but, despite yielding complementary dietary information, these techniques have rarely been combined within the same study. Here we present for the first time a comprehensive approach to interpreting ancient lifeways through the results of buccal and occlusal microwear, and δ13C and δ15N isotope analyses applied to the same individuals of prehistoric populations of Hungary from the Middle Neolithic to the Late Bronze Age periods. This study aimed to (a) assess if the combination of techniques yields a more precise assessment of past dietary and subsistence practices, and (b) contribute to our understanding of the dietary patterns of the prehistoric Hungarian populations. Overall, no correlations between microwear and δ13C and δ15N isotope variables were observed, except for a relationship between nitrogen and the vertical and horizontal index. However, we found that diachronic differences are influenced by the variation within the period. Particularly, we found differences in microwear and isotope variables between Middle Neolithic sites, indicating that there were different dietary practices among those populations. Additionally, microwear results suggest no changes in the abrasiveness of the diet, neither food processing methods, despite higher C4 plant resource consumption shown by carbon isotopic signal. Thus, we demonstrate that the integration of dental microwear and carbon and nitrogen stable isotope methodologies can provide complementary information for making inferences about paleodietary habits.
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13
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Dumouchel L, Bobe R, Wynn JG, Barr WA. The environments of Australopithecus anamensis at Allia Bay, Kenya: A multiproxy analysis of early Pliocene Bovidae. J Hum Evol 2021; 151:102928. [PMID: 33453510 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2020.102928] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2020] [Revised: 12/01/2020] [Accepted: 12/01/2020] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
Australopithecus anamensis, among the earliest fully bipedal hominin species, lived in eastern Africa around 4 Ma. Much of what is currently known about the paleoecology of A. anamensis comes from the type locality, Kanapoi, Kenya. Here, we extend knowledge of the range of environments occupied by A. anamensis by presenting the first multiproxy paleoecological analysis focusing on Bovidae excavated from another important locality where A. anamensis was recovered, locality 261-1 (ca. 3.97 Ma) at Allia Bay, East Turkana, Kenya. Paleoenvironments are reconstructed using astragalar ecomorphology, mesowear, hypsodonty index, and oxygen and carbon isotopes from dental enamel. We compare our results to those obtained from Kanapoi. Our results show that the bovid community composition is similar between the two fossil assemblages. Allia Bay and Kanapoi bovid astragalar ecomorphology spans the spectrum of modern morphologies indicative of grassland, woodland, and even forest-adapted forms. Dietary reconstructions based on stable isotopes, mesowear, and hypsodonty reveal that these bovids' diet encompassed the full C3 to C4 dietary spectrum and overlap in the two data sets. Our results allow us to confidently extend our reconstructions of the paleoenvironments of A. anamensis at Kanapoi to Allia Bay, where this pivotal hominin species is associated with heterogeneous settings including habitats with varying degrees of tree cover, including grasslands, bushlands, and woodlands.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laurence Dumouchel
- Department of Anthropology, Wichita State University, 1845 Fairmount Street, Wichita, KS 67260, USA.
| | - René Bobe
- Primate Models for Behavioural Evolution Lab, Institute of Cognitive & Evolutionary Anthropology, School of Anthropology, University of Oxford, 64 Banbury Rd, Park Town, Oxford, OX2 6PN, UK; Paleo-Primate Project Gorongosa, Gorongosa National Park, Sofala, Mozambique; Interdisciplinary Center for Archaeology and Evolution of Human Behaviour (ICArEHB), Universidade Do Algarve, Campus de Penha, Faro, 8005-139, Portugal
| | - Jonathan G Wynn
- Division of Earth Sciences, National Science Foundation, 2415 Eisenhower Avenue, Alexandria, VA 22314, USA
| | - W Andrew Barr
- Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology, The George Washington University, 800 22(nd)Street Northwest, Suite 6000, Washington, DC 20052, USA
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14
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Correia MA, Foley R, Mirazón Lahr M. Applying dental microwear texture analysis to the living: Challenges and prospects. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2020; 174:542-554. [PMID: 32920867 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.24133] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2020] [Revised: 07/22/2020] [Accepted: 08/02/2020] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES The food that people and animals consume leaves microscopic traces on teeth in predictable ways, and analyses of these markings-known as dental microwear analyses-allow us to reverse engineer the characteristics of diet. However, the microwear features of modern human diets are most often interpreted through the lens of ethnographic records. Given the subtle variation within human diets when compared to other species, we need better models of how foods and processing techniques produce marks on teeth. Here, we report on the second study to target the occlusal surface microwear of living human populations, and the first to target populations other than foragers. METHODS We collected 150 dental impressions from five Kenyan communities: El Molo, Turkana (Kerio), Luhya (Webuye), Luhya (Port Victoria), and Luo (Port Victoria), representing a range of subsistence strategies and associated staple diets-fishing, pastoralism, and agriculture. Our results suggest that the occlusal microwear of these groups records differences in diet. However, biofilm obscured most of the molds obtained despite the steps taken to remove it, resulting in only 38 usable surfaces. RESULTS Due to the biofilm problem and final sample size, the analysis did not have enough power to demonstrate the differences observed statistically. The results and problems encountered are here explained. CONCLUSIONS Considering that in vivo studies of dental microwear texture analysis have the potential to increase our understanding of the association between patterns of dental microwear and complex, mixed human diets, resolution of the current pitfalls of the technique is critical.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Ana Correia
- Leverhulme Centre for Human Evolutionary Studies, Department of Archaeology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Robert Foley
- Leverhulme Centre for Human Evolutionary Studies, Department of Archaeology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.,Turkana Basin Institute, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Marta Mirazón Lahr
- Leverhulme Centre for Human Evolutionary Studies, Department of Archaeology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.,Turkana Basin Institute, Nairobi, Kenya
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Abstract
Diet is a major driver of hominin evolution, but most of the geochemical evidence relies on carbon isotopes (δ13C). Here, we report enamel stable calcium isotope (δ44/42Ca) values against δ13C values for several hominins and co-existing primates in the Turkana Basin area, circa 4 to 2 Ma. Australopithecus anamensis clusters with mammal browsers, Kenyanthropus platyops is distinct from A. anamensis in foraging into more open environments and the coexisting Theropithecus brumpti encompasses both the grazer and omnivore/carnivore domains. Early Homo is remarkable for its wide distribution in δ44/42Ca values, possibly reflecting omnivorous and opportunistic preferences. Paranthropus boisei is uniquely distributed in the δ13C versus δ44/42Ca iso-space being distinct from all other hominins from the Turkana Basin area as well as from the co-existing Theropithecus oswaldi. Several hypotheses are explored to discuss the unique δ44/42Ca values of Paranthropus boisei including significant differences observed with δ44/42Ca values recently reported for P. robustus from South Africa, questioning the monophyly of this genus. Non-traditional stable isotopes, such as of calcium, have potential to expand our understanding of ancient diets. Here, Martin et al. use stable calcium isotopes recovered from fossil tooth enamel to compare the dietary ecology of hominins and other primates in the Turkana Basin 2-4 million years ago.
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16
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Clarifying relationships between cranial form and function in tapirs, with implications for the dietary ecology of early hominins. Sci Rep 2020; 10:8809. [PMID: 32483196 PMCID: PMC7264299 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-65586-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/18/2019] [Accepted: 04/20/2020] [Indexed: 11/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Paleontologists and paleoanthropologists have long debated relationships between cranial morphology and diet in a broad diversity of organisms. While the presence of larger temporalis muscle attachment area (via the presence of sagittal crests) in carnivorans is correlated with durophagy (i.e. hard-object feeding), many primates with similar morphologies consume an array of tough and hard foods—complicating dietary inferences of early hominins. We posit that tapirs, large herbivorous mammals showing variable sagittal crest development across species, are ideal models for examining correlations between textural properties of food and sagittal crest morphology. Here, we integrate dietary data, dental microwear texture analysis, and finite element analysis to clarify the functional significance of the sagittal crest in tapirs. Most notably, pronounced sagittal crests are negatively correlated with hard-object feeding in extant, and several extinct, tapirs and can actually increase stress and strain energy. Collectively, these data suggest that musculature associated with pronounced sagittal crests—and accompanied increases in muscle volume—assists with the processing of tough food items in tapirs and may yield similar benefits in other mammals including early hominins.
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17
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van Casteren A, Strait DS, Swain MV, Michael S, Thai LA, Philip SM, Saji S, Al-Fadhalah K, Almusallam AS, Shekeban A, McGraw WS, Kane EE, Wright BW, Lucas PW. Hard plant tissues do not contribute meaningfully to dental microwear: evolutionary implications. Sci Rep 2020; 10:582. [PMID: 31953510 PMCID: PMC6969033 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-57403-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2019] [Accepted: 12/27/2019] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Reconstructing diet is critical to understanding hominin adaptations. Isotopic and functional morphological analyses of early hominins are compatible with consumption of hard foods, such as mechanically-protected seeds, but dental microwear analyses are not. The protective shells surrounding seeds are thought to induce complex enamel surface textures characterized by heavy pitting, but these are absent on the teeth of most early hominins. Here we report nanowear experiments showing that the hardest woody shells - the hardest tissues made by dicotyledonous plants - cause very minor damage to enamel but are themselves heavily abraded (worn) in the process. Thus, hard plant tissues do not regularly create pits on enamel surfaces despite high forces clearly being associated with their oral processing. We conclude that hard plant tissues barely influence microwear textures and the exploitation of seeds from graminoid plants such as grasses and sedges could have formed a critical element in the dietary ecology of hominins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adam van Casteren
- Department of Anthropology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, 63130, USA.
| | - David S Strait
- Department of Anthropology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, 63130, USA.,Palaeo-Research Institute, University of Johannesburg, Auckland Park, Gauteng, South Africa
| | - Michael V Swain
- Department of Bioengineering, Don State Technical University, Rostov-on-Don, Russia
| | - Shaji Michael
- Department of Bioclinical Sciences, Faculty of Dentistry, Kuwait University, P.O. Box 24923, Safat, 13110, Kuwait
| | - Lidia A Thai
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, College of Engineering and Petroleum, Kuwait University, P.O. Box 5969, Safat, 13060, Kuwait
| | - Swapna M Philip
- Department of Bioclinical Sciences, Faculty of Dentistry, Kuwait University, P.O. Box 24923, Safat, 13110, Kuwait
| | - Sreeja Saji
- Department of Bioclinical Sciences, Faculty of Dentistry, Kuwait University, P.O. Box 24923, Safat, 13110, Kuwait
| | - Khaled Al-Fadhalah
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, College of Engineering and Petroleum, Kuwait University, P.O. Box 5969, Safat, 13060, Kuwait
| | - Abdulwahab S Almusallam
- Department of Chemical Engineering, College of Engineering and Petroleum, Kuwait University, P.O. Box 5969, Safat, 13060, Kuwait
| | - Ali Shekeban
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, College of Engineering and Petroleum, Kuwait University, P.O. Box 5969, Safat, 13060, Kuwait
| | - W Scott McGraw
- Department of Anthropology, 4064 Smith Laboratory, The Ohio State University, 174 West 18th Ave., Columbus, OH, 43210-1106, USA
| | - Erin E Kane
- Department of Anthropology, Boston University, 232 Bay State Rd, Boston, MA02215-1403, USA
| | - Barth W Wright
- College of Osteopathic Medicine, Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences, 1750 Independence Ave., Kansas City, MO, 64106, USA
| | - Peter W Lucas
- Department of Bioclinical Sciences, Faculty of Dentistry, Kuwait University, P.O. Box 24923, Safat, 13110, Kuwait.,Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Apartado Postal, 0843-03092, Panamá, República de Panamá
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18
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Teaford MF, Ungar PS, Taylor AB, Ross CF, Vinyard CJ. The dental microwear of hard-object feeding in laboratory Sapajus apella and its implications for dental microwear formation. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2020; 171:439-455. [PMID: 31922261 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.24000] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2019] [Revised: 11/23/2019] [Accepted: 12/20/2019] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES This study seeks to determine if (a) consumption of hard food items or a mixture of food items leads to the formation of premolar or molar microwear in laboratory capuchin monkeys (Sapajus apella) in one feeding session and (b) rates of microwear formation are associated with the number of food items consumed. MATERIALS AND METHODS Five adult male capuchins were used in two experiments, one where they were fed unshelled Brazil nuts, and the other where they were fed a mixture of food items. Dental impressions were taken before and after each feeding session. Epoxy casts made from those impressions then were used in SEM analyses of rates of microwear formation. Upper and lower premolars and molars were analyzed. Qualitative comparisons were made and Spearman's rank-order correlations used to examine the relationship between rates of microwear formation and number of Brazil nuts consumed. RESULTS Premolars and molars generally showed new microwear in the form of pits and scratches. However, the incidence of those features was low (0-6%). Rates of microwear formation were highest during the consumption of Brazil nuts. DISCUSSION Variations in the rate of microwear formation on the premolars likely reflected patterns of ingestion whereas consistency in the rate of microwear on the molars likely reflected patterns of chewing. While dental microwear formation seemed to be correlated with the number of hard objects consumed, rates did differ between individuals. Differences in results between the two experiments demonstrate some of the limitations in our knowledge of dental microwear formation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mark F Teaford
- Department of Basic Science, Touro University, Vallejo, California
| | - Peter S Ungar
- Department of Anthropology, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas
| | - Andrea B Taylor
- Department of Basic Science, Touro University, Vallejo, California
| | - Callum F Ross
- Department of Organismal Biology and Anatomy, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
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19
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Davies TW, Delezene LK, Gunz P, Hublin JJ, Skinner MM. Endostructural morphology in hominoid mandibular third premolars: Discrete traits at the enamel-dentine junction. J Hum Evol 2019; 136:102670. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2019.102670] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2019] [Revised: 09/06/2019] [Accepted: 09/06/2019] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
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20
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McLester E, Brown M, Stewart FA, Piel AK. Food abundance and weather influence habitat-specific ranging patterns in forest- and savanna mosaic-dwelling red-tailed monkeys (Cercopithecus ascanius). AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2019; 170:217-231. [PMID: 31423563 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.23920] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2019] [Revised: 06/16/2019] [Accepted: 08/01/2019] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Primates that live in predominantly forested habitats and open, savanna mosaics should exhibit behavioral responses to differing food distributions and weather. We compared ecological constraints on red-tailed monkey ranging behavior in forest and savanna mosaic environments. Intraspecific variation in adaptations to these conditions may reflect similar pressures faced by hominins during the Plio-Pleistocene. METHODS We followed six groups in moist evergreen forest at Ngogo (Uganda) and one group in a savanna-woodland mosaic at the Issa Valley (Tanzania). We used spatial analyses to compare home range sizes and daily travel distances (DTD) between sites. We used measures of vegetation density and phenology to interpolate spatially explicit indices of food (fruit, flower, and leaves) abundance. We modeled DTD and range use against food abundance. We modeled DTD and at Issa hourly travel distances (HTD), against temperature and rainfall. RESULTS Compared to Issa, monkeys at Ngogo exhibited significantly smaller home ranges and less variation in DTD. DTD related negatively to fruit abundance, which had a stronger effect at Issa. DTD and HTD related negatively to temperature but not rainfall. This effect did not differ significantly between sites. Home range use did not relate to food abundance at either site. CONCLUSIONS Our results indicate food availability and thermoregulatory constraints influence red-tailed monkey ranging patterns. Intraspecific variation in home range sizes and DTD likely reflects different food distributions in closed and open habitats. We compare our results with hypotheses of evolved hominin behavior associated with the Plio-Pleistocene shift from similar closed to open environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edward McLester
- School of Natural Sciences and Psychology, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool, United Kingdom
| | - Michelle Brown
- Department of Anthropology, University of California, Santa Barbara, California
| | - Fiona A Stewart
- School of Natural Sciences and Psychology, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool, United Kingdom.,Greater Mahale Ecosystem Research and Conservation Project, Box 60118, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
| | - Alex K Piel
- School of Natural Sciences and Psychology, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool, United Kingdom.,Greater Mahale Ecosystem Research and Conservation Project, Box 60118, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
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21
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Motes-Rodrigo A, Majlesi P, Pickering TR, Laska M, Axelsen H, Minchin TC, Tennie C, Hernandez-Aguilar RA. Chimpanzee extractive foraging with excavating tools: Experimental modeling of the origins of human technology. PLoS One 2019; 14:e0215644. [PMID: 31091268 PMCID: PMC6519788 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0215644] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2018] [Accepted: 04/06/2019] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
It is hypothesized that tool-assisted excavation of plant underground storage organs (USOs) played an adaptive role in hominin evolution and was also once considered a uniquely human behavior. Recent data indicate that savanna chimpanzees also use tools to excavate edible USOs. However, those chimpanzees remain largely unhabituated and we lack direct observations of this behavior in the wild. To fill this gap in our knowledge of hominoid USO extractive foraging, we conducted tool-mediated excavation experiments with captive chimpanzees naïve to this behavior. We presented the chimpanzees with the opportunity to use tools in order to excavate artificially-placed underground foods in their naturally forested outdoor enclosure. No guidance or demonstration was given to the chimpanzees at any time. The chimpanzees used tools spontaneously in order to excavate the underground foods. They exhibited six different tool use behaviors in the context of excavation: probe, perforate, dig, pound, enlarge and shovel. However, they still excavated manually more often than they did with tools. Chimpanzees were selective in their choice of tools that we provided, preferring longer tools for excavation. They also obtained their own tools mainly from naturally occurring vegetation and transported them to the excavation site. They reused some tools throughout the study. Our new data provide a direction for the study of variables relevant to modeling USO extractive foraging by early hominins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alba Motes-Rodrigo
- Department of Early Prehistory and Quaternary Ecology, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Parandis Majlesi
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis, Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Travis Rayne Pickering
- Department of Anthropology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, United States of America
- Plio-Pleistocene Palaeontology Section, Department of Vertebrates, Ditsong National Museum of Natural History (Transvaal Museum), Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Matthias Laska
- Department of Physics, Chemistry and Biology (IFM), Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden
| | | | | | - Claudio Tennie
- Department of Early Prehistory and Quaternary Ecology, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
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22
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Quinn RL. Isotopic equifinality and rethinking the diet of
Australopithecus anamensis. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2019; 169:403-421. [DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.23846] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2018] [Revised: 03/08/2019] [Accepted: 04/16/2019] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Rhonda L. Quinn
- Department of Sociology, Anthropology and Social WorkSeton Hall University South Orange New Jersey
- Department of Earth and Planetary SciencesRutgers University Piscataway New Jersey
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23
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Cofran Z. Brain size growth in Australopithecus. J Hum Evol 2019; 130:72-82. [PMID: 31010545 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2019.02.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2018] [Revised: 02/26/2019] [Accepted: 02/27/2019] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
Postnatal growth is one of the proximate means by which humans attain massive adult brain size. Humans are characterized by the maintenance of prenatal brain growth rates into the first postnatal year, as well as an overall extended period of growth. The evolution of this pattern is difficult to assess due to its relatively brief duration and the underrepresentation of well-preserved fossil individuals who died during this short period. In this study, I use Monte Carlo methods to reconstruct postnatal brain growth rates in Australopithecus afarensis and Australopithecus africanus, based on estimates of neonatal brain size and of likely brain size and age at death of infant specimens (A.L. 333-105, DIK-1-1, and Taung). Neonatal brain size is reconstructed from the empirical scaling relationship among catarrhines which humans follow, and conservative estimates of fossils' chronological ages and brain sizes are drawn from the literature. Simulated distributions of these values are used to calculate average annual rates (ARs) of brain growth and proportional size change from birth (PSC), which are compared to resampled statistics from humans, chimpanzees and gorillas of known age and sex. Simulated ARs and PSCs for A. afarensis are significantly lower than those of chimpanzees and gorillas. Both ARs and PSCs for A. africanus are similar to chimpanzee and gorilla values. These results indicate that although these early hominins were derived in some aspects of brain anatomy, high rates of brain growth did not appear until later in human evolution. Moreover, findings also imply that brain growth rates are not a simple function of adult brain size. This study provides important new information about the evolution of brain growth, despite limitations inherent in fossil samples.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zachary Cofran
- Anthropology Department, Vassar College, 124 Raymond Avenue, Box 42, Poughkeepsie, NY 12603, USA.
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24
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Schulz‐Kornas E, Stuhlträger J, Clauss M, Wittig RM, Kupczik K. Dust affects chewing efficiency and tooth wear in forest dwelling Western chimpanzees (Pan troglodytesverus). AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2019; 169:66-77. [DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.23808] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/17/2018] [Revised: 01/04/2019] [Accepted: 02/13/2019] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Ellen Schulz‐Kornas
- Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary AnthropologyMax Planck Weizmann Center for Integrative Archaeology and Anthropology Leipzig Germany
| | - Julia Stuhlträger
- Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary AnthropologyMax Planck Weizmann Center for Integrative Archaeology and Anthropology Leipzig Germany
| | - Marcus Clauss
- Clinic for Zoo Animals, Exotic Pets and Wildlife, Vetsuisse FacultyUniversity of Zuerich Zürich Switzerland
| | - Roman M. Wittig
- Department of PrimatologyMax Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology Leipzig Germany
- Taï Chimpanzee ProjectCentre Suisse de Recherches Scientifiques Abidjan Côte d'Ivoire
| | - Kornelius Kupczik
- Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary AnthropologyMax Planck Weizmann Center for Integrative Archaeology and Anthropology Leipzig Germany
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25
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Veneziano A, Irish JD, Meloro C, Stringer C, De Groote I. The functional significance of dental and mandibular reduction in
Homo
: A catarrhine perspective. Am J Primatol 2019; 81:e22953. [DOI: 10.1002/ajp.22953] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2018] [Revised: 12/07/2018] [Accepted: 12/22/2018] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Alessio Veneziano
- School of Natural Sciences and PsychologyLiverpool John Moores UniversityLiverpoolUK
| | - Joel D. Irish
- School of Natural Sciences and PsychologyLiverpool John Moores UniversityLiverpoolUK
- Evolutionary Studies Institute and Centre for Excellence in PaleoSciencesUniversity of the Witwatersrand, Private Bag 3, WITS 2050JohannesburgSouth Africa
| | - Carlo Meloro
- School of Natural Sciences and PsychologyLiverpool John Moores UniversityLiverpoolUK
| | - Chris Stringer
- Department of Earth SciencesThe Natural History MuseumLondonUK
| | - Isabelle De Groote
- School of Natural Sciences and PsychologyLiverpool John Moores UniversityLiverpoolUK
- Department of Earth SciencesThe Natural History MuseumLondonUK
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26
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Kupczik K, Toro-Ibacache V, Macho GA. On the relationship between maxillary molar root shape and jaw kinematics in Australopithecus africanus and Paranthropus robustus. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2018; 5:180825. [PMID: 30225074 PMCID: PMC6124107 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.180825] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2018] [Accepted: 08/03/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Plio-Pleistocene hominins from South Africa remain poorly understood. Here, we focus on how Australopithecus africanus and Paranthropus robustus exploited and-in part-partitioned their environment. Specifically, we explore the extent to which first maxillary molar roots (M1) are oriented and thus, by proxy, estimate the direction of loads habitually exerted on the chewing surface. Landmark-based shape analysis of M1 root reconstructions of 26 South African hominins and three East African Paranthropus boisei suggest that A. africanus may have been able to dissipate the widest range of laterally directed loads. Paranthropus robustus and P. boisei, despite having overlapping morphologies, differ in aspects of root shape/size, dento-cranial morphologies, microwear textures and C4 food consumption. Hence, while Paranthropus monophyly cannot be excluded, equivalence of dietary niche can. The South African hominins occupied distinct ecological niches, whereby P. robustus appears uniquely adapted to dissipate antero-posteriorly directed loads.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kornelius Kupczik
- Max Planck Weizmann Center for Integrative Archaeology and Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, Leipzig 04103, Germany
| | - Viviana Toro-Ibacache
- Department of Human Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, Leipzig 04103, Germany
- Facultad de Odontología, Universidad de Chile, Sergio Livingstone Pohlhammer 943, Independencia, Región Metropolitana, Santiago de Chile, Chile
| | - Gabriele A. Macho
- School of Archaeology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3QY, UK
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Birkbeck, University of London, London WC1E 7HX, UK
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27
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The costs of living at the edge: Seasonal stress in wild savanna-dwelling chimpanzees. J Hum Evol 2018; 121:1-11. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2018.03.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2017] [Revised: 02/28/2018] [Accepted: 03/01/2018] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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28
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Caley T, Extier T, Collins JA, Schefuß E, Dupont L, Malaizé B, Rossignol L, Souron A, McClymont EL, Jimenez-Espejo FJ, García-Comas C, Eynaud F, Martinez P, Roche DM, Jorry SJ, Charlier K, Wary M, Gourves PY, Billy I, Giraudeau J. A two-million-year-long hydroclimatic context for hominin evolution in southeastern Africa. Nature 2018; 560:76-79. [PMID: 29988081 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-018-0309-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/20/2017] [Accepted: 04/25/2018] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
The past two million years of eastern African climate variability is currently poorly constrained, despite interest in understanding its assumed role in early human evolution1-4. Rare palaeoclimate records from northeastern Africa suggest progressively drier conditions2,5 or a stable hydroclimate6. By contrast, records from Lake Malawi in tropical southeastern Africa reveal a trend of a progressively wetter climate over the past 1.3 million years7,8. The climatic forcings that controlled these past hydrological changes are also a matter of debate. Some studies suggest a dominant local insolation forcing on hydrological changes9-11, whereas others infer a potential influence of sea surface temperature changes in the Indian Ocean8,12,13. Here we show that the hydroclimate in southeastern Africa (20-25° S) is controlled by interplay between low-latitude insolation forcing (precession and eccentricity) and changes in ice volume at high latitudes. Our results are based on a multiple-proxy reconstruction of hydrological changes in the Limpopo River catchment, combined with a reconstruction of sea surface temperature in the southwestern Indian Ocean for the past 2.14 million years. We find a long-term aridification in the Limpopo catchment between around 1 and 0.6 million years ago, opposite to the hydroclimatic evolution suggested by records from Lake Malawi. Our results, together with evidence of wetting at Lake Malawi, imply that the rainbelt contracted toward the Equator in response to increased ice volume at high latitudes. By reducing the extent of woodland or wetlands in terrestrial ecosystems, the observed changes in the hydroclimate of southeastern Africa-both in terms of its long-term state and marked precessional variability-could have had a role in the evolution of early hominins, particularly in the extinction of Paranthropus robustus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thibaut Caley
- EPOC, UMR 5805, CNRS, University of Bordeaux, Pessac, France.
| | - Thomas Extier
- EPOC, UMR 5805, CNRS, University of Bordeaux, Pessac, France.,Laboratoire des Sciences du Climat et de l'Environnement, LSCE/IPSL, CEA-CNRS-UVSQ, Université Paris-Saclay, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - James A Collins
- GFZ - German Research Center for Geosciences, Section 5.1 Geomorphology, Organic Surface Geochemistry Laboratory, Potsdam, Germany.,Alfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, Bremerhaven, Germany
| | - Enno Schefuß
- MARUM - Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany
| | - Lydie Dupont
- MARUM - Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany
| | - Bruno Malaizé
- EPOC, UMR 5805, CNRS, University of Bordeaux, Pessac, France
| | - Linda Rossignol
- EPOC, UMR 5805, CNRS, University of Bordeaux, Pessac, France
| | - Antoine Souron
- PACEA, UMR 5199, CNRS, University of Bordeaux, Pessac, France
| | | | | | - Carmen García-Comas
- Research and Development Center for Global Change, (JAMSTEC), Yokohama, Japan.,Ecology Group, University of Vic - Central University of Catalonia, Barcelona, Spain
| | | | | | - Didier M Roche
- Laboratoire des Sciences du Climat et de l'Environnement, LSCE/IPSL, CEA-CNRS-UVSQ, Université Paris-Saclay, Gif-sur-Yvette, France.,Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Faculty of Science, Cluster Earth and Climate, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Stephan J Jorry
- Unité Géosciences Marines, Institut Français de Recherche pour l'Exploitation de la Mer (IFREMER), Plouzané, France
| | - Karine Charlier
- EPOC, UMR 5805, CNRS, University of Bordeaux, Pessac, France
| | - Mélanie Wary
- EPOC, UMR 5805, CNRS, University of Bordeaux, Pessac, France
| | | | - Isabelle Billy
- EPOC, UMR 5805, CNRS, University of Bordeaux, Pessac, France
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29
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Peterson A, Abella EF, Grine FE, Teaford MF, Ungar PS. Microwear textures of Australopithecus africanus and Paranthropus robustus molars in relation to paleoenvironment and diet. J Hum Evol 2018; 119:42-63. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2018.02.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2017] [Revised: 02/03/2018] [Accepted: 02/05/2018] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
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30
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van Casteren A, Lucas PW, Strait DS, Michael S, Bierwisch N, Schwarzer N, Al-Fadhalah KJ, Almusallam AS, Thai LA, Saji S, Shekeban A, Swain MV. Evidence that metallic proxies are unsuitable for assessing the mechanics of microwear formation and a new theory of the meaning of microwear. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2018; 5:171699. [PMID: 29892367 PMCID: PMC5990759 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.171699] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2017] [Accepted: 04/20/2018] [Indexed: 05/14/2023]
Abstract
Mammalian tooth wear research reveals contrasting patterns seemingly linked to diet: irregularly pitted enamel surfaces, possibly from consuming hard seeds, versus roughly aligned linearly grooved surfaces, associated with eating tough leaves. These patterns are important for assigning diet to fossils, including hominins. However, experiments establishing conditions necessary for such damage challenge this paradigm. Lucas et al. (Lucas et al. 2013 J. R. Soc. Interface10, 20120923. (doi:10.1098/rsif.2012.0923)) slid natural objects against enamel, concluding anything less hard than enamel would rub, not abrade, its surface (producing no immediate wear). This category includes all organic plant matter. Particles harder than enamel, with sufficiently angular surfaces, could abrade it immediately, prerequisites that silica/silicate particles alone possess. Xia et al. (Xia, Zheng, Huang, Tian, Chen, Zhou, Ungar, Qian. 2015 Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA112, 10 669-10 672. (doi:10.1073/pnas.1509491112)) countered with experiments using brass and aluminium balls. Their bulk hardness was lower than enamel, but the latter was abraded. We examined the ball exteriors to address this discrepancy. The aluminium was surfaced by a thin rough oxide layer harder than enamel. Brass surfaces were smoother, but work hardening during manufacture gave them comparable or higher hardness than enamel. We conclude that Xia et al.'s results are actually predicted by the mechanical model of Lucas et al. To explain wear patterns, we present a new model of textural formation, based on particle properties and presence/absence of silica(tes).
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Affiliation(s)
- Adam van Casteren
- Max Planck Weizmann Center for Integrative Archeology and Anthropology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, D-04103, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Peter W. Lucas
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Luis Clement Ave., Bldg. 401 Tupper Balboa Ancon, Panama, Republic of Panama
| | - David S. Strait
- Department of Anthropology, Washington University in St Louis, Campus Box 1114, One Brookings Drive, St Louis, MO 63130, USA
| | - Shaji Michael
- Department of Bioclinical Sciences, Faculty of Dentistry, Kuwait University, PO Box 24923, Safat 11310, Kuwait
| | - Nick Bierwisch
- Saxonian Institute of Surface Mechanics SIO, Tankow 2, 18569 Ummanz, Rügen, Germany
| | - Norbert Schwarzer
- Saxonian Institute of Surface Mechanics SIO, Tankow 2, 18569 Ummanz, Rügen, Germany
| | - Khaled J. Al-Fadhalah
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, College of Engineering and Petroleum, Kuwait University, PO Box 5969, Safat 13060, Kuwait
| | - Abdulwahab S. Almusallam
- Department of Chemical Engineering, College of Engineering and Petroleum, Kuwait University, PO Box 5969, Safat 13060, Kuwait
| | - Lidia A. Thai
- Nanotechnology Research Facility, College of Engineering and Petroleum, Kuwait University, PO Box 5969, Safat 13060, Kuwait
| | - Sreeja Saji
- Department of Bioclinical Sciences, Faculty of Dentistry, Kuwait University, PO Box 24923, Safat 11310, Kuwait
| | - Ali Shekeban
- Nanotechnology Research Facility, College of Engineering and Petroleum, Kuwait University, PO Box 5969, Safat 13060, Kuwait
| | - Michael V. Swain
- Department of Bioclinical Sciences, Faculty of Dentistry, Kuwait University, PO Box 24923, Safat 11310, Kuwait
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Dental topography and the diet of Homo naledi. J Hum Evol 2018; 118:14-26. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2018.02.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2017] [Revised: 02/05/2018] [Accepted: 02/08/2018] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
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van Casteren A, Lucas PW, Strait DS, Michael S, Bierwisch N, Schwarzer N, Al-Fadhalah KJ, Almusallam AS, Thai LA, Saji S, Shekeban A, Swain MV. Evidence that metallic proxies are unsuitable for assessing the mechanics of microwear formation and a new theory of the meaning of microwear. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2018; 5:171699. [PMID: 29892367 DOI: 10.5061/dryad.72431] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2017] [Accepted: 04/20/2018] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Abstract
Mammalian tooth wear research reveals contrasting patterns seemingly linked to diet: irregularly pitted enamel surfaces, possibly from consuming hard seeds, versus roughly aligned linearly grooved surfaces, associated with eating tough leaves. These patterns are important for assigning diet to fossils, including hominins. However, experiments establishing conditions necessary for such damage challenge this paradigm. Lucas et al. (Lucas et al. 2013 J. R. Soc. Interface10, 20120923. (doi:10.1098/rsif.2012.0923)) slid natural objects against enamel, concluding anything less hard than enamel would rub, not abrade, its surface (producing no immediate wear). This category includes all organic plant matter. Particles harder than enamel, with sufficiently angular surfaces, could abrade it immediately, prerequisites that silica/silicate particles alone possess. Xia et al. (Xia, Zheng, Huang, Tian, Chen, Zhou, Ungar, Qian. 2015 Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA112, 10 669-10 672. (doi:10.1073/pnas.1509491112)) countered with experiments using brass and aluminium balls. Their bulk hardness was lower than enamel, but the latter was abraded. We examined the ball exteriors to address this discrepancy. The aluminium was surfaced by a thin rough oxide layer harder than enamel. Brass surfaces were smoother, but work hardening during manufacture gave them comparable or higher hardness than enamel. We conclude that Xia et al.'s results are actually predicted by the mechanical model of Lucas et al. To explain wear patterns, we present a new model of textural formation, based on particle properties and presence/absence of silica(tes).
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Affiliation(s)
- Adam van Casteren
- Max Planck Weizmann Center for Integrative Archeology and Anthropology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, D-04103, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Peter W Lucas
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Luis Clement Ave., Bldg. 401 Tupper Balboa Ancon, Panama, Republic of Panama
| | - David S Strait
- Department of Anthropology, Washington University in St Louis, Campus Box 1114, One Brookings Drive, St Louis, MO 63130, USA
| | - Shaji Michael
- Department of Bioclinical Sciences, Faculty of Dentistry, Kuwait University, PO Box 24923, Safat 11310, Kuwait
| | - Nick Bierwisch
- Saxonian Institute of Surface Mechanics SIO, Tankow 2, 18569 Ummanz, Rügen, Germany
| | - Norbert Schwarzer
- Saxonian Institute of Surface Mechanics SIO, Tankow 2, 18569 Ummanz, Rügen, Germany
| | - Khaled J Al-Fadhalah
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, College of Engineering and Petroleum, Kuwait University, PO Box 5969, Safat 13060, Kuwait
| | - Abdulwahab S Almusallam
- Department of Chemical Engineering, College of Engineering and Petroleum, Kuwait University, PO Box 5969, Safat 13060, Kuwait
| | - Lidia A Thai
- Nanotechnology Research Facility, College of Engineering and Petroleum, Kuwait University, PO Box 5969, Safat 13060, Kuwait
| | - Sreeja Saji
- Department of Bioclinical Sciences, Faculty of Dentistry, Kuwait University, PO Box 24923, Safat 11310, Kuwait
| | - Ali Shekeban
- Nanotechnology Research Facility, College of Engineering and Petroleum, Kuwait University, PO Box 5969, Safat 13060, Kuwait
| | - Michael V Swain
- Department of Bioclinical Sciences, Faculty of Dentistry, Kuwait University, PO Box 24923, Safat 11310, Kuwait
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Paine OC, Koppa A, Henry AG, Leichliter JN, Codron D, Codron J, Lambert JE, Sponheimer M. Grass leaves as potential hominin dietary resources. J Hum Evol 2018; 117:44-52. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2017.10.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2017] [Revised: 10/27/2017] [Accepted: 10/30/2017] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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Guatelli-Steinberg D. Dental anthropology in the AJPA: Its roots and heights. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2018; 165:879-892. [PMID: 29574842 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.23352] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2017] [Revised: 10/12/2017] [Accepted: 10/18/2017] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
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Teaford MF, Ungar PS, Taylor AB, Ross CF, Vinyard CJ. In vivo rates of dental microwear formation in laboratory primates fed different food items. BIOSURFACE AND BIOTRIBOLOGY 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bsbt.2017.11.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/18/2022] Open
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Berthaume MA, Schroer K. Extant ape dental topography and its implications for reconstructing the emergence of early Homo. J Hum Evol 2017; 112:15-29. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2017.09.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 57] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2016] [Revised: 09/01/2017] [Accepted: 09/05/2017] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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Percher AM, Romero A, Galbany J, Nsi Akoue G, Pérez-Pérez A, Charpentier MJE. Buccal dental-microwear and dietary ecology in a free-ranging population of mandrills (Mandrillus sphinx) from southern Gabon. PLoS One 2017; 12:e0186870. [PMID: 29073184 PMCID: PMC5658090 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0186870] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2017] [Accepted: 10/09/2017] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Analyses of dental micro- and macro-wear offer valuable information about dietary adaptations. The buccal surface of the teeth does not undergo attrition, indicating that dental microwear may directly inform about food properties. Only a few studies have, however, investigated the environmental and individual factors involved in the formation of such microwear in wild animals. Here, we examine variation of buccal microwear patterns of mandibular molars in a large free-ranging population of mandrills (Mandrillus sphinx). We first explore the influence of seasonality and individual's sex, age and tooth macrowear-expressed as the percent of dentine exposure (PDE)-on six microwear variables. Second, we analyze the interplay between individual's diet and PDE. In a last analysis, we revisit our results on mandrills in the light of other primate's microwear studies. We show that the average buccal scratch length and the frequency of vertical buccal scratches are both higher during the long dry season compared to the long rainy season, while we observe the inverse relationship for disto-mesial scratches. In addition, females present more disto-mesial scratches than males and older individuals present higher scratch density, a greater proportion of horizontal scratches but a lower proportion of vertical scratches than young animals. PDE yields similar results than individual's age confirming earlier results in this population on the relationship between age and tooth macrowear. Because seasonality and individual characteristics are both known to impact mandrills' diet in the study population, our results suggest that buccal microwear patterns may inform about individual feeding strategies. Furthermore, PDE increases with the consumption of potentially abrasive monocotyledonous plants, independently of the individuals' age, although it is not affected by food mechanical properties. Finally, buccal scratch densities by orientation appear as relevant proxies for discriminating between different primate taxa.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alice M. Percher
- Institut des Sciences de l’Évolution de Montpellier (ISE-M) UMR5554, Univ. Montpellier, CNRS, IRD, EPHE, Montpellier, France
| | - Alejandro Romero
- Departamento de Biotecnología, Universidad de Alicante, Alicante, Spain
| | - Jordi Galbany
- Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology, Department of Anthropology, The George Washington University, Washington, DC, United States of America
| | | | - Alejandro Pérez-Pérez
- Secció de Zoologia i Antropologia, Departament de Biologia Evolutiva, Ecologia i Ciències Ambientals, Facultat de Biologia, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Marie J. E. Charpentier
- Institut des Sciences de l’Évolution de Montpellier (ISE-M) UMR5554, Univ. Montpellier, CNRS, IRD, EPHE, Montpellier, France
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Sperber GH. Dental Wear: Attrition, Erosion, and Abrasion-A Palaeo-Odontological Approach. Dent J (Basel) 2017; 5:E19. [PMID: 29563425 PMCID: PMC5806976 DOI: 10.3390/dj5020019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2017] [Revised: 06/08/2017] [Accepted: 06/08/2017] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
This paper reviews the surface ablation of early hominin teeth by attrition, abrasion, and erosive dental wear. The occurrence of these lesions is explored in a sample of South African fossil australopithecine dentitions revealing excessive wear. Interpretation of the nature of the dietary components causing such wear in the absence of carious erosion provides insight into the ecology of the Plio-pleistocene epoch (1-2 million years ago). Fossil teeth inform much of the living past by their retained evidence after death. Tooth wear is the ultimate forensic dental evidence of lives lived.
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Affiliation(s)
- Geoffrey H Sperber
- Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 1C9, Canada.
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Aliaga-Martínez A, Romero A, Galbany J, Hernández-Aguilar RA, Pérez-Pérez A. Buccal dental microwear texture and catarrhine diets. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2017; 163:462-473. [PMID: 28369731 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.23219] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2016] [Revised: 03/06/2017] [Accepted: 03/13/2017] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Two-dimensional dental microwear analyses on occlusal and nonocclusal enamel surfaces have been widely applied to reconstruct the feeding behaviors of extant primates and to infer ecological adaptations in fossil hominins. To date, analyses of dental microwear texture, using three-dimensional, Scale-Sensitive Fractal Analysis approaches has only been applied to occlusal surfaces. Here, for the first time, we apply this 3D proxy to buccal enamel surfaces of catarrhine primates of known feeding ecologies to assess the utility of nonocclusal microwear texture variables as indicators of dietary habits. MATERIALS AND METHODS Buccal microwear texture attributes were collected from high-resolution second molar casts in a sample of seven extant African catarrhine taxa with differing dietary behaviors. A white-light confocal microscope with a 100× objective lens was used to record six microwear texture variables that assess complexity, anisotropy, heterogeneity, and textural fill volume. RESULTS The physical properties and variation in hardness of ingested foods is reflected by significant differences in the microwear variables on buccal enamel surfaces between species, which is in agreement with early reports using 2D microwear signatures of the same samples. Species that consume hard brittle items showed high buccal enamel complexity and low anisotropy values, while folivorous species that consume tough foods revealed high anisotropy and low complexity enamel patterns. DISCUSSION Buccal microwear texture analysis on enamel surfaces clearly reflects diet-related variation in nonhuman primates. Our findings indicate that microwear texture attributes on nonworking enamel surfaces provide an alternative procedure for reconstructing dietary behavior when wear facets on occlusal surfaces are lacking.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrés Aliaga-Martínez
- Departament de Biologia Evolutiva, Secció de Zoologia i Antropologia Biològica, Ecologia i Ciències Ambientals, Universitat de Barcelona, Av. Diagonal, 643, Barcelona, 08028, Spain
| | - Alejandro Romero
- Departamento de Biotecnología, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Alicante, AC 99, Alicante, 03080, Spain
| | - Jordi Galbany
- Department of Anthropology, Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology, The George Washington University, 800 22nd Street NW Ste 6000, Washington DC, 20052
| | - R Adriana Hernández-Aguilar
- Department of Biosciences, Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), University of Oslo, PO Box 1066 Blindern NO-0316, Oslo, Norway.,Ugalla Primate Project, Kigoma, Tanzania
| | - Alejandro Pérez-Pérez
- Departament de Biologia Evolutiva, Secció de Zoologia i Antropologia Biològica, Ecologia i Ciències Ambientals, Universitat de Barcelona, Av. Diagonal, 643, Barcelona, 08028, Spain
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Martínez LM, Estebaranz-Sánchez F, Galbany J, Pérez-Pérez A. Testing Dietary Hypotheses of East African Hominines Using Buccal Dental Microwear Data. PLoS One 2016; 11:e0165447. [PMID: 27851745 PMCID: PMC5112956 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0165447] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2016] [Accepted: 10/12/2016] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
There is much debate on the dietary adaptations of the robust hominin lineages during the Pliocene-Pleistocene transition. It has been argued that the shift from C3 to C4 ecosystems in Africa was the main factor responsible for the robust dental and facial anatomical adaptations of Paranthropus taxa, which might be indicative of the consumption of fibrous, abrasive plant foods in open environments. However, occlusal dental microwear data fail to provide evidence of such dietary adaptations and are not consistent with isotopic evidence that supports greater C4 food intake for the robust clades than for the gracile australopithecines. We provide evidence from buccal dental microwear data that supports softer dietary habits than expected for P. aethiopicus and P. boisei based both on masticatory apomorphies and isotopic analyses. On one hand, striation densities on the buccal enamel surfaces of paranthropines teeth are low, resembling those of H. habilis and clearly differing from those observed on H. ergaster, which display higher scratch densities indicative of the consumption of a wide assortment of highly abrasive foodstuffs. Buccal dental microwear patterns are consistent with those previously described for occlusal enamel surfaces, suggesting that Paranthropus consumed much softer diets than previously presumed and thus calling into question a strict interpretation of isotopic evidence. On the other hand, the significantly high buccal scratch densities observed in the H. ergaster specimens are not consistent with a highly specialized, mostly carnivorous diet; instead, they support the consumption of a wide range of highly abrasive food items.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Mónica Martínez
- Secció de Zoologia i Antropologia, Departament de Biologia Evolutiva, Ecologia i Ciències Ambientals, Facultat de Biologia, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Ferran Estebaranz-Sánchez
- Secció de Zoologia i Antropologia, Departament de Biologia Evolutiva, Ecologia i Ciències Ambientals, Facultat de Biologia, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Jordi Galbany
- Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology, Department of Anthropology, The George Washington University, Washington DC, United States of America
| | - Alejandro Pérez-Pérez
- Secció de Zoologia i Antropologia, Departament de Biologia Evolutiva, Ecologia i Ciències Ambientals, Facultat de Biologia, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
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Daegling DJ, Carlson KJ, Tafforeau P, de Ruiter DJ, Berger LR. Comparative biomechanics of Australopithecus sediba mandibles. J Hum Evol 2016; 100:73-86. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2016.08.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/16/2016] [Revised: 08/16/2016] [Accepted: 08/24/2016] [Indexed: 01/20/2023]
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Dietary ecology of fossil Theropithecus: Inferences from dental microwear textures of extant geladas from ecologically diverse sites. J Hum Evol 2016; 99:1-9. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2016.05.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2015] [Revised: 02/16/2016] [Accepted: 05/19/2016] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
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Membrane-plate transition in leaves as an influence on dietary selectivity and tooth form. J Hum Evol 2016; 98:18-26. [PMID: 27265521 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2016.04.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2014] [Revised: 01/29/2016] [Accepted: 04/26/2016] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Primates need accurate sensory signals about food quality to forage efficiently. Current evidence suggests that they target leaf foods based on color at long-range, reinforcing this with post-ingestive sensations relating to leaf toughness evoked during chewing. Selection against tough leaves effectively selects against high fiber content, which in turn gives a greater opportunity of acquiring protein. Here we consider a novel intermediate mechanical factor that could aid a folivore: leaves may transform mechanically from membranes (sheets that cannot maintain their shape under gravitational loads and thus 'flop') early on in development into plates (that can maintain their shape) as they mature. This transformation can be detected visually. Mechanical tests on two species of leaf eaten by southern muriqui monkeys (Brachyteles arachnoides) in Southern Atlantic Forest, Brazil, support a membrane-to-plate shift in turgid leaves during their development. A measure of this mechanical transition, termed lambda (λ), was found to correlate with both leaf color and toughness, thus supporting a potential role in leaf selection. Muriquis appear to select membranous leaves, but they also eat leaves that are plate-like. We attribute this to the degree of cresting of their molar teeth. A dietary choice restricted to membranous leaves might typify the type of 'fallback' leaf that even frugivorous primates will target because membranes of low toughness are relatively easily chewed. This may be relevant to the diets of hominins because these lack the bladed postcanine teeth seen in mammals with a specialized folivorous diet. We suggest that mammals with such dental adaptations can consume tougher leaf 'plates' than others.
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The effectiveness of using carbonate isotope measurements of body tissues to infer diet in human evolution: Evidence from wild western chimpanzees ( Pan troglodytes verus ). J Hum Evol 2015; 88:70-78. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2015.09.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2014] [Revised: 08/31/2015] [Accepted: 09/01/2015] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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45
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46
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Hardy K, Brand-Miller J, Brown KD, Thomas MG, Copeland L. The Importance of Dietary Carbohydrate in Human Evolution. QUARTERLY REVIEW OF BIOLOGY 2015; 90:251-68. [DOI: 10.1086/682587] [Citation(s) in RCA: 141] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
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47
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Quinn RL. Influence of Plio-Pleistocene basin hydrology on the Turkana hominin enamel carbonate δ(18)O values. J Hum Evol 2015; 86:13-31. [PMID: 26277306 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2015.06.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/23/2014] [Revised: 06/02/2015] [Accepted: 06/07/2015] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
Stable oxygen isotopes of hominin enamel carbonate (δ(18)OEC) provide a window into aspects of past drinking behavior and diet, body size, breastfeeding and weaning, mobility, and paleoclimate. It is tempting to compare all hominins across time and space in order to gauge species-level adaptations to changing environments and niche separation between those living sympatrically. Basinal, sub-basinal, and micro-environmental differences, however, may exert an influence on variation in enamel carbonate isotopic values that must be reconciled before hominin species across Africa can be meaningfully compared. Plio-Pleistocene Turkana hominin δ(18)OEC values show a considerable spread, potentially revealing many intrinsic and extrinsic contributing factors operating on different scales. In this study, I examine Turkana hominin δ(18)OEC values relative to identity (taxon, tooth type and number, body size of taxon), dietary (δ(13)C value, Turkana coeval and modern mammalian δ(18)OEC values), and contextual (time, depositional environment) information of each specimen and collection locality and discuss various potential influences. Turkana hominin δ(18)OEC values may primarily reflect differences in imbibed water sources (lake vs. river) as a function of evolving basin hydrology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rhonda L Quinn
- Department of Sociology, Anthropology and Social Work, Seton Hall University, South Orange, NJ 07079, USA; Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Rutgers University, USA.
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48
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Stewart KM. Environmental change and hominin exploitation of C4-based resources in wetland/savanna mosaics. J Hum Evol 2014; 77:1-16. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2014.10.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2013] [Revised: 03/05/2014] [Accepted: 10/06/2014] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
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49
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Christensen HB. Similar associations of tooth microwear and morphology indicate similar diet across marsupial and placental mammals. PLoS One 2014; 9:e102789. [PMID: 25099537 PMCID: PMC4123885 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0102789] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/02/2013] [Accepted: 06/24/2014] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Low-magnification microwear techniques have been used effectively to infer diets within many unrelated mammalian orders, but the extent to which patterns are comparable among such different groups, including long extinct mammal lineages, is unknown. Microwear patterns between ecologically equivalent placental and marsupial mammals are found to be statistically indistinguishable, indicating that microwear can be used to infer diet across the mammals. Microwear data were compared to body size and molar shearing crest length in order to develop a system to distinguish the diet of mammals. Insectivores and carnivores were difficult to distinguish from herbivores using microwear alone, but combining microwear data with body size estimates and tooth morphology provides robust dietary inferences. This approach is a powerful tool for dietary assessment of fossils from extinct lineages and from museum specimens of living species where field study would be difficult owing to the animal’s behavior, habitat, or conservation status.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hilary B Christensen
- The University of Chicago, Department of Geophysical Sciences, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America; Bates College, Geology Department, Lewiston, Maine, United States of America
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Fashing PJ, Nguyen N, Venkataraman VV, Kerby JT. Gelada feeding ecology in an intact ecosystem at Guassa, Ethiopia: Variability over time and implications for theropith and hominin dietary evolution. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2014; 155:1-16. [DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.22559] [Citation(s) in RCA: 63] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2014] [Revised: 06/05/2014] [Accepted: 06/06/2014] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Peter J. Fashing
- Department of Anthropology; California State University Fullerton; 800 N. State College Boulevard Fullerton CA 92834
- Environmental Studies Program; California State University Fullerton; 800 N. State College Boulevard Fullerton CA 92834
| | - Nga Nguyen
- Department of Anthropology; California State University Fullerton; 800 N. State College Boulevard Fullerton CA 92834
- Environmental Studies Program; California State University Fullerton; 800 N. State College Boulevard Fullerton CA 92834
| | | | - Jeffrey T. Kerby
- The Polar Center and Department of Biology; Pennsylvania State University; University Park PA 16802
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