Abstract

PEREZ-CRESPO, Víctor Adrián et al. Dietary variation of the prairie mammoth at Laguna de las Cruces, San Luis Potosi, Mexico. Bol. Soc. Geol. Mex [online]. 2013, vol.65, n.3, pp.573-580. ISSN 1405-3322.

Using biogeochemical techniques based on ¹³C/¹²C and ¹⁸O/¹⁶O relationships in dental enamel, it was inferred if the diets of four Columbian mammoths (Mammuthus columbi) from Laguna de las Cruces (Salinas, San Luis Potosí, México) changed or were similar in time as a response to temperature variations. The results show that the diet of individual DP-1975 kept unchanged, whereas for mammoths DP-1976 and DP-1978 there was a small tendency for eating more C₃ plants than C₄ plants, possibly due to decreased temperatures, as shown by δ¹⁸O values. However, the isotopic carbon values of mammoth DP-1979 show that the specimen was first a mixed feeder C₃/C₄ and later ate mostly C₄ plants, probably due to an increase in the temperature. Furthermore comparisons made between δ¹³C and δ¹⁸O values at the population level show that the two young mammoths, with 18 and 20 years old, are different from the two adults, which seem to be 43 and 47 years old respectively. Such differences may be due to different feed behaviors among young and adult, although it could also indicate that the individuals came from different areas.

Keywords : Mammuthus columbi; diet; habitat; Laguna de las Cruces; México.

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