Matt Sponheimer
Datos Biográficos
| ID | 76630 |
|---|---|
| NOMBRE | Matt Sponheimer |
| NOMBRES | Matt |
| APELLIDO | Sponheimer |
| FIRMA | SPONHEIMER M |
| AFILIACIONES | University of Colorado Boulder |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-8743-1123 |
| VERIFICADO | Sí |
| TOTAL DE OBRAS | 61 |
| TOTAL DE CITAS | 1050 |
| TOTAL COMO AUTOR | 60 |
| TOTAL COMO EDITOR | 1 |
| PRIMER AÑO DE PUBLICACIÓN | 1999 |
| AÑO MÁS RECIENTE DE PUBLICACIÓN | 2026 |
| ÍNDICE H | 19 |
Paranthropus Paleoenvironments Based on Micromammal Assemblages
Refining near-infrared spectroscopy for collagen quantification
Collagen is a vital archaeological material, preserving biochemical signatures that provide insights into past environments, diets, and human-animal interactions. However, diagenesis can lead to rapid and inconspicuous collagen degradation. Given the variability in collagen preservation and its significance for analyses such as radiocarbon dating, stable isotope analysis, and ZooMS, researchers have developed prescreening techniques to assess col…
Toothfir
Problems with Paranthropus
Geology, Fauna, and Paleoenvironmental Reconstructions of the Makapansgat Limeworks Australopithecus africanus -Bearing Paleo-Cave
The Makapansgat Valley is located in Limpopo Province, South Africa (Figure 7.1), and is the northernmost of the South African australopithecine fossil sites. Hominin fossils were first recovered there in 1947, but the history and significance of the valley dates to the nineteenth century. The name of the site and valley derives from the Historic, or Gwasa, Cave at the head of the valley, which was the location of a siege in 1854 (Naidoo, 1987; E…
Stable carbon isotope and molar microwear variability of South African australopiths in relation to paleohabitats and taxonomy
Direct radiocarbon dates of mid Upper Palaeolithic human remains from Dolní Věstonice II and Pavlov I, Czech Republic
Seasonal and habitat effects on the nutritional properties of savanna vegetation
Grass leaves as potential hominin dietary resources
Evidence for differences in activity between socioeconomic groups atKulubnarti,Nubia (550-800CE), from osseous modifications of the proximal femur
Past bioarchaeological analyses of human remains from the Early Christian Period site of Kulubnarti, Nubia (550-800 CE), have revealed differences in patterns of stress between two contemporaneous cemeteries (mainland [21-R-2] and island [21-S-46]) that are thought to represent separate socioeconomic groups. However, to this point, differences in activity between cemetery groups and sexes at Kulubnarti have been poorly understood. In this study, …
Tooth Enamel Biogeochemistry and Early Hominin Diets
Biogeochemical studies of hominin dietary ecology began decades ago, and, despite refinements, the basic tools being used and questions being asked have changed little since then. Carbon isotope analyses have had the most impact, with numerous studies showing that up to c.4 Ma, early hominins consumed primarily C3 vegetation, as do extant apes, but thereafter consumption of C4 foods became conspicuous if variable. Paranthropus boisei completely a…
Advances in primate stable isotope ecology—Achievements and future prospects
Stable isotope biogeochemistry has been used to investigate foraging ecology in non-human primates for nearly 30 years. Whereas early studies focused on diet, more recently, isotopic analysis has been used to address a diversity of ecological questions ranging from niche partitioning to nutritional status to variability in life history traits. With this increasing array of applications, stable isotope analysis stands to make major contributions t…
The stable isotope ecology of Pan in Uganda and beyond
Stable isotope analysis has long been used to study the dietary ecology of living and fossil primates, and there has been increasing interest in using stable isotopes to study primate habitat use and anthropogenic impacts on non-human primates. Here, we examine the stable carbon and nitrogen isotope compositions of chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) from seven communities in Uganda across a continuum of habitat structure (closed to more open) and acce…
Small mammal insectivore stable carbon isotope compositions as habitat proxies in a South African savanna ecosystem
Dietary flexibility of Australopithecus afarensis in the face of paleoecological change during the middle Pliocene
Hominin Paleodiets
Contribution of Stable Light Isotopes to Paleoenvironmental Reconstruction
Stable isotopes (carbon, nitrogen, sulfur), diet, and anthropometry in urban Colombian women
OBJECTIVES: We conducted stable isotope and dietary analyses of women from higher and lower socioeconomic status (SES) groups in Cali, Colombia. The objectives were to test between-group differences in stable isotope, dietary, and anthropometric characteristics, and to evaluate relationships between diet and stable isotope values. METHODS: Hair samples from 38 women (mean age 33.4) from higher and lower SES groups were analyzed for δ(13) C, δ(15)…
Intra‐tooth stable isotope analysis of dentine
Intra‐tooth stable isotope analysis of dentine provides a more sensitive means to examine infant and childhood life history in the past than conventional cross‐sectional analyses that rely on age‐at‐death. In addition, reconstructions of early diet and life history using an intra‐tooth approach circumvent potential problems associated with mortality bias, which may operate strongly during infancy and childhood. We present new intra‐tooth stable c…
Hominin Paleodiets
Contribution of Stable Light Isotopes to Paleoenvironmental Reconstruction
Isotopic evidence of early hominin diets
Carbon isotope studies of early hominins from southern Africa showed that their diets differed markedly from the diets of extant apes. Only recently, however, has a major influx of isotopic data from eastern Africa allowed for broad taxonomic, temporal, and regional comparisons among hominins. Before 4 Ma, hominins had diets that were dominated by C 3 resources and were, in that sense, similar to extant chimpanzees. By about 3.5 Ma, multiple homi…
Some Ruminations on Australopith Diets
Early Hominin Paleoecology
An introduction to the multidisciplinary field of hominin paleoecology for advanced undergraduate students and beginning graduate students, 'Early Hominin Paleoecology' offers an up to date review of the relevant literature, exploring new research and synthesising old and new ideas. Recent advances in the field and the laboratory are not only improving our understanding of human evolution but are also transforming it. Given the increasing special…
Animal palaeocommunity variability and habitat preference of the robust australopiths in South Africa
The palaeoenvironments associated with Australopithecus ( Paranthropus ) robustus have generally been reconstructed as habitat mosaics; typically open, arid grasslands in the vicinity of woodlands or forests with a nearby source of permanent water. Disentangling which aspect(s) of these mosaics might have been preferred by the hominins presents a significant challenge. The aim of this study is to enhance our resolution of animal palaeocommunity s…
Carbon isotope fractionation between diet, breath CO2, and bioapatite in different mammals
Alteration of Enamel Carbonate Environments during Fossilization
Oxygen Isotopes in Enamel Carbonate and their Ecological Significance
Combining isotopic and ecomorphological data to refine bovid paleodietary reconstruction
Nitrogen isotopes in mammalian herbivores
Nitrogen isotope analysis is a common technique for investigating dietary behaviour in modern and archaeological populations. One of its primary uses is to provide trophic level information. This application is possible because of a ∼3‰ enrichment in15N along each step in the food chain, resulting in carnivores having higher δ15N values than herbivores, which in turn have higher δ15N values than plants. Much variation has also been observed withi…
Dental microwear and stable isotopes inform the paleoecology of extinct hominins
Determining the diet of an extinct species is paramount in any attempt to reconstruct its paleoecology. Because the distribution and mechanical properties of food items may impact postcranial, cranial, mandibular, and dental morphologies related to their procurement, ingestion, and mastication, these anatomical attributes have been studied intensively. However, while mechanical environments influence skeletal and dental features, it is not clear …
Tracking changing environments using stable carbon isotopes in fossil tooth enamel
Hominins, sedges, and termites
Do "savanna" chimpanzees consume C4 resources
What do stable isotopes tell us about hominid dietary and ecological niches in the pliocene
By now a reasonable set of carbon and oxygen isotope data from tooth enamel has been accumulated for South African Plio-Pleistocene hominids and associated fauna. Almost all individuals measured, independent of species and importantly, environment, show significant C4 dietary inputs with some individuals showing very substantial C4 inputs. This implies interactions with grassy environments for a period of well over a million years, a period that …
Sr/Ca and early hominin diets revisited
Intra‐tooth stable isotope analysis of dentine
Intra‐tooth stable isotope analysis of dentine provides a more sensitive means to examine infant and childhood life history in the past than conventional cross‐sectional analyses that rely on age‐at‐death. In addition, reconstructions of early diet and life history using an intra‐tooth approach circumvent potential problems associated with mortality bias, which may operate strongly during infancy and childhood. We present new intra‐tooth stable c…
Indications of habitat association of Australopithecus robustus in the Bloubank Valley, South Africa
Contributions of biogeochemistry to understanding hominin dietary ecology
Dietary ecology is one key to understanding the biology, lifeways, and evolutionary pathways of many animals. Determining the diets of long-extinct hominins, however, is a considerable challenge. Although archaeological evidence forms a pillar of our understanding of diet and subsistence in the more recent past, for early hominins, the most direct evidence is to be found in the fossils themselves. Here we review the suite of emerging biochemical …
Craniofacial biomechanics and functional and dietary inferences in hominin paleontology
Taxonomic, anatomical, and spatio-temporal variations in the stable carbon and nitrogen isotopic compositions of plants from an African savanna
What Insights Can Baboon Feeding Ecology Provide for Early Hominin Niche Differentiation
An experimental study of nitrogen flux in llamas
Dietary flexibility of Australopithecus afarensis in the face of paleoecological change during the middle Pliocene
Inter‐ and intrahabitat dietary variability of chacma baboons ( Papio ursinus ) in South African savannas based on fecal δ 13 C, δ 15 N, and %N
Baboons are dietary generalists, consuming a wide range of food items in varying proportions. It is thus difficult to quantify and explain the dietary behavior of these primates. We present stable carbon (δ 13 C) and nitrogen (δ 15 N) isotopic data, and percentage nitrogen (%N), of feces from chacma baboons ( Papio ursinus ) living in two savanna environments of South Africa: the mountainous Waterberg region and the low‐lying Kruger National Park…
Strontium isotope ratios in fossil teeth from South Africa
Using carbon isotopes to track dietary change in modern, historical, and ancient primates
Stable isotope analysis can be used to document dietary changes within the lifetimes of individuals and may prove useful for investigating fallback food consumption in modern, historical, and ancient primates. Feces, hair, and enamel are all suitable materials for such analysis, and each has its own benefits and limitations. Feces provide highly resolved temporal dietary data, but are generally limited to providing dietary information about moder…
Seasonal and habitat effects on the nutritional properties of savanna vegetation
Intraspecific variation in hair δ 13 C and δ 15 N values of ring‐tailed lemurs ( Lemur catta ) with known individual histories, behavior, and feeding ecology
Stable carbon and nitrogen isotope compositions were analyzed from hair samples of 30 sympatric ring‐tailed lemurs ( Lemur catta ) inhabiting the Beza Mahafaly Special Reserve, Madagascar. All lemurs were known individuals involved in a longitudinal study, which allowed us to explore the degree to which group membership, sex, health status, and migration influenced their stable isotope compositions. The differences in δ 13 C and δ 15 N values bet…
Small mammal insectivore stable carbon isotope compositions as habitat proxies in a South African savanna ecosystem
Isotopic Evidence for the Diet of an Early Hominid, Australopithecus africanus
Current consensus holds that the 3-million-year-old hominid Australopithecus africanus subsisted on fruits and leaves, much as the modern chimpanzee does. Stable carbon isotope analysis of A. africanus from Makapansgat Limeworks, South Africa, demonstrates that this early hominid ate not only fruits and leaves but also large quantities of carbon-13–enriched foods such as grasses and sedges or animals that ate these plants, or both. The results su…
Oxygen Isotopes in Enamel Carbonate and their Ecological Significance
Alteration of Enamel Carbonate Environments during Fossilization
Combining isotopic and ecomorphological data to refine bovid paleodietary reconstruction
Three case studies used to reassess the reliability of fossil bone and enamel isotope signals for paleodietary studies
Sulphur isotopes in palaeodietary studies
Recent advances in mass spectrometry now allow relatively routine measurements of sulphur isotopes (δ 34 S) in small samples (>10 mg) of tissue from archaeological human, plant, and faunal samples. δ 34 S values of human and faunal bone collagen can indicate residence or migration and can provide palaeodietary information. Here we present a review of applications of sulphur isotopes to archaeological materials, and we also present preliminary res…
An experimental study of nitrogen flux in llamas
What do stable isotopes tell us about hominid dietary and ecological niches in the pliocene
By now a reasonable set of carbon and oxygen isotope data from tooth enamel has been accumulated for South African Plio-Pleistocene hominids and associated fauna. Almost all individuals measured, independent of species and importantly, environment, show significant C4 dietary inputs with some individuals showing very substantial C4 inputs. This implies interactions with grassy environments for a period of well over a million years, a period that …
Nitrogen isotopes in mammalian herbivores
Nitrogen isotope analysis is a common technique for investigating dietary behaviour in modern and archaeological populations. One of its primary uses is to provide trophic level information. This application is possible because of a ∼3‰ enrichment in15N along each step in the food chain, resulting in carnivores having higher δ15N values than herbivores, which in turn have higher δ15N values than plants. Much variation has also been observed withi…
Carbon isotope fractionation between diet, breath CO2, and bioapatite in different mammals
Taxonomic, anatomical, and spatio-temporal variations in the stable carbon and nitrogen isotopic compositions of plants from an African savanna
Hominins, sedges, and termites
Sr/Ca and early hominin diets revisited
Icarus, Isotopes, and Australopith Diets
Early hominin diets can be studied in many ways, such as dental allometry/morphology, dental microwear, and archaeology (e.g., Robinson, 1954; Isaac, 1971; Grine, 1981). Although these and other techniques are commonly used to reconstruct “diet,” we rarely question the degree to which they are actually capable of doing so. For instance, in the strictest sense, dental morphology cannot tell us about the totality of an organism’s diet, but it can t…
Isotopic Evidence for Dietary Variability in the Early Hominin Paranthropus robustus
Traditional methods of dietary reconstruction do not allow the investigation of dietary variability within the lifetimes of individual hominins. However, laser ablation stable isotope analysis reveals that the δ 13 C values of Paranthropus robustus individuals often changed seasonally and interannually. These data suggest that Paranthropus was not a dietary specialist and that by about 1.8 million years ago, savanna-based foods such as grasses or…
Contributions of biogeochemistry to understanding hominin dietary ecology
Dietary ecology is one key to understanding the biology, lifeways, and evolutionary pathways of many animals. Determining the diets of long-extinct hominins, however, is a considerable challenge. Although archaeological evidence forms a pillar of our understanding of diet and subsistence in the more recent past, for early hominins, the most direct evidence is to be found in the fossils themselves. Here we review the suite of emerging biochemical …
Inter‐ and intrahabitat dietary variability of chacma baboons ( Papio ursinus ) in South African savannas based on fecal δ 13 C, δ 15 N, and %N
Baboons are dietary generalists, consuming a wide range of food items in varying proportions. It is thus difficult to quantify and explain the dietary behavior of these primates. We present stable carbon (δ 13 C) and nitrogen (δ 15 N) isotopic data, and percentage nitrogen (%N), of feces from chacma baboons ( Papio ursinus ) living in two savanna environments of South Africa: the mountainous Waterberg region and the low‐lying Kruger National Park…
Do "savanna" chimpanzees consume C4 resources
Hominin Paleodiets
Contribution of Stable Light Isotopes to Paleoenvironmental Reconstruction
Intraspecific variation in hair δ 13 C and δ 15 N values of ring‐tailed lemurs ( Lemur catta ) with known individual histories, behavior, and feeding ecology
Stable carbon and nitrogen isotope compositions were analyzed from hair samples of 30 sympatric ring‐tailed lemurs ( Lemur catta ) inhabiting the Beza Mahafaly Special Reserve, Madagascar. All lemurs were known individuals involved in a longitudinal study, which allowed us to explore the degree to which group membership, sex, health status, and migration influenced their stable isotope compositions. The differences in δ 13 C and δ 15 N values bet…
Tracking changing environments using stable carbon isotopes in fossil tooth enamel
What Insights Can Baboon Feeding Ecology Provide for Early Hominin Niche Differentiation
Indications of habitat association of Australopithecus robustus in the Bloubank Valley, South Africa
Increased Dietary Breadth in Early Hominin Evolution
Biology (49 obras) · Pleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology (48 obras) · Ecology (33 obras) · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies (31 obras) · Ecology (30 obras) · Geography (30 obras) · Primate Behavior and Ecology (30 obras) · Zoology (23 obras) · Evolution and Paleontology Studies (20 obras) · Paleontology (19 obras)