Faunal assemblage seriation of southern African Pliocene and Pleistocene fossil deposits

Fossil assemblages from the Pliocene and Pleistocene of southern Africa were seriated in order to give a better idea of their relative chronology. Time-sensitive mammals were selected for calculation of the Faunal Resemblance Index among 17 site units. On the basis of a logistical seriation and subsequent site analysis, the following sequence of sites was deemed most probable: Makapansgat Member 3, Makapansgat Member 4, Taung Dart deposits, Sterkfontein Member 4 and Taung Hrdli?ka deposits, Sterkfontein Member 5 (in part) and Kromdraai B, Kromdraai A and Swartkrans Member 1, Swartkrans Member 2, Swartkrans Member 3, Plovers Lake, Cornelia, Elandsfontein Main Site, Cave of Hearths Acheulian levels, Florisbad and Equus Cave and Klasies River Mouth. © 1995 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

Brief communication: Plio‐Pleistocene eagle predation on fossil cercopithecids from the Humpata Plateau,southern Angola

Recent studies suggest a large raptor such as the crowned eagle (Stephanaoetus coronatus) was responsible for collecting at least a portion of the primate fauna from the South African fossil site of Taung, including its lone hominin specimen. This taphonomic signature at Taung is currently regarded as a unique and, most likely, isolated case in primate and human evolution. However, the activities of large, carnivorous birds should also be detectable at other primate fossil localities in Africa if raptors have been a strong selective force throughout primate evolution. Over the last 60 years, a collection of extinct cercopithecids has been assembled from several cave breccias on the Humpata Plateau in southern Angola. The material, dated near the Plio‐Pleistocene boundary, includes an assortment of craniodental and postcranial remains variably assigned to Papio (Dinopithecus) cf. quadratirostris, Parapapio, Cercopithecoides, and Theropithecus. We compare the Angolan and Taung material to remains of extant primates killed by crowned eagles in the Ivory Coast's Tai National Park. Our analysis indicates that the size distribution and composition of fauna from the localities is quite similar and that there are striking consistencies in damage to the crania from each site. The absence of large bodied (>20 kg) primates and other mammalian taxa at the Taung hominin locality and Tai, and their rarity in Angola, combined with the strong likelihood that raptor nests were positioned near fissure openings at both fossil localities, provides additional support for eagle involvement. On the basis of this evidence, we conclude that at least some of the Angolan cercopithecids were most likely raptor prey and hypothesize that raptor predation has been a strong and perhaps underappreciated selective force during the course of primate evolution. Am J Phys Anthropol 2009. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Neutron microtomography‐based virtual extraction and analysis of a cercopithecoid partial cranium (STS 1039) embedded in a breccia fragment from sterkfontein member 4 (South Africa)

The Plio‐Pleistocene karstic sedimentary deposits of Sterkfontein Cave, South Africa, yielded numerous fossil primate specimens embedded in blocks of indurated breccia, including the partial cercopithecoid cranium labelled STS 1039. Because the surrounding matrix masks most of its morphology, the specimen remains taxonomically undetermined. While the use of X‐ray microtomography did not allow extracting any structural information about the specimen, we experimented a new investigative technique based on neutron microtomography. Using this innovative approach, we successfully virtually extracted, reconstructed in 3D and quantitatively assessed the preserved dentognathic structural morphology of STS 1039, including details of its postcanine maxillary dentition. Following comparative analyses with a number of Plio‐Pleistocene and extant cercopithecoid taxa, we tentatively propose a taxonomic attribution to the taxon Cercopithecoides williamsi. Our experience highlights the remarkable potential of this novel imaging method to extract diagnostic information and to identify the fossil remains embedded in hard breccia from the South African hominin‐bearing cave sites. Am J Phys Anthropol 159:737–745, 2016. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

New Late-Pleistocene uranium–thorium and ESR dates for the Singa hominid (Sudan)

The Singa (Sudan) calvaria has been interpreted previously as a terminal Pleistocene modern human fossil, perhaps related to the Bushman of Southern Africa. Here we report new mass-spectrometric U–Th dates for the calcrete deposit enclosing the fossil teeth and the calvaria itself and new electron spin resonance (ESR) dates for associated dental materials. The new data constrain the age of the hominid to at least 133±2 ka. Together with the preferred linear uptake (LU) ESR dates, the U–Th data confirm that the intriguing mixture of modern and archaic characteristics in the Singa specimen date from isotope stage 6. Far from being a modern human fossil, it represents a rare example of an archaic African population which may have been ancestral to all modernHomo sapiens.     

Morphometric variation in the papionin muzzle and the biochronology of the South African Plio‐Pleistocene karst cave deposits

Papionin monkeys are widespread, relatively common members of Plio‐Pleistocene faunal assemblages across Africa. For these reasons, papionin taxa have been used as biochronological indicators by which to infer the ages of the South African karst cave deposits. A recent morphometric study of South African fossil papionin muzzle shape concluded that its variation attests to a substantial and greater time depth for these sites than is generally estimated. This inference is significant, because accurate dating of the South African cave sites is critical to our knowledge of hominin evolution and mammalian biogeographic history. We here report the results of a comparative analysis of extant papionin monkeys by which variability of the South African fossil papionins may be assessed. The muzzles of 106 specimens representing six extant papionin genera were digitized and interlandmark distances were calculated. Results demonstrate that the overall amount of morphological variation present within the fossil assemblage fits comfortably within the range exhibited by the extant sample. We also performed a statistical experiment to assess the limitations imposed by small sample sizes, such as typically encountered in the fossil record. Results suggest that 15 specimens are sufficient to accurately represent the population mean for a given phenotype, but small sample sizes are insufficient to permit the accurate estimation of the population standard deviation, variance, and range. The suggestion that the muzzle morphology of fossil papionins attests to a considerable and previously unrecognized temporal depth of the South African karst cave sites is unwarranted. Am J Phys Anthropol 2010. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Technical note: Comparability of Hrdlička's Catalog of crania data based on measurement landmark definitions

Archival sources of data are critical anthropological resources that inform inferences about human biology and evolutionary history. Craniometric data are one of the most widely available sources of information on human population history because craniometrics were critical in early 20th century debates about race and biological variation. As such, extensive databases of raw craniometric data were published at the same time that the field was working to standardize measurement protocol. Hrdli?ka published between 10 and 16 raw craniometric variables for over 8,000 individuals in a series of seven catalogs throughout his career. With a New World emphasis, Hrdli?ka's data complement those of Howells ( 1973 , 1989 ) and the two databases have been combined in the past. In this note we verify the consistency of Hrdli?ka's measurement protocol throughout the Catalog series and compare these definitions to those used by Howells. We conclude that 12 measurements are comparable throughout the Catalogs, with five of these equivalent to Howells' measurements: maximum cranial breadth (XCB), basion‐bregma height (BBH), maximum bizygomatic breadth (ZYB), nasal breadth (NLB), and breadth of the upper alveolar arch (MAB). Most of Hrdli?ka's measurements are not strictly comparable to those of Howells, thus limiting the utility of combined datasets for multivariate analysis. Four measurements are inconsistently defined by Hrdli?ka and we recommend not using these data: nasal height, orbit breadth, orbit height, and menton‐nasion height. This note promotes Hrdli?ka's tireless efforts at data collection and re‐emphasizes observer error as a legitimate concern in craniometry as the field shifts to morphometric digital data acquisition. Am J Phys Anthropol, 2011. © 2011 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Fossil papio cranium from !Ncumtsa (Koanaka) Hills, western Ngamiland, Botswana

Three fossils, a cranium of Papio, a cercopithecid frontal bone, and a mandible of juvenile Papio, have been recovered from cave deposits in the !Ncumtsa (Koanaka) Hills of western Ngamiland, Botswana. These specimens are significant because well‐preserved crania of Papio are extremely rare in the fossil record outside of South Africa and because this is the first report of fossil primate cranial remains from Botswana. Thermoluminescence dating of surrounding cave matrix indicates an age of ≥317 ± 114 ka, within the Middle Pleistocene, although it may be older. Based on univariate and multivariate analyses, the adult !Ncumtsa specimen falls within the range of variation seen in extant forms of Papio, yet is distinct from any living species/subspecies and represents a new taxon, named here as a new subspecies of Papio hamadryas—Papio hamadryas botswanae. Am J Phys Anthropol, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

New age constraints on the Middle Stone Age occupations of Kharga Oasis, Western Desert, Egypt

Spring-deposited carbonate rocks, or tufas, exposed along the flanks of the Libyan Plateau near Kharga Oasis, Western Desert, Egypt, can provide a directly datable stratigraphic context for Middle Stone Age/Middle Paleolithic (MSA/MP) archaeological material, if such material can be found in situ within tufa strata. Two such localities (Mata'na Site G and Bulaq Wadi 3 Locus 1) described by Caton-Thompson were revisited and sampled for uranium-series analysis. At Mata'na Site G (KH/MT-02), Middle Stone Age ("Upper Levalloisian") material is underlain by tufa with a uranium-series age of 127.9+/-1.3 ka, and overlain by tufa with an age of 103+/-14 ka. At Bulaq Wadi 3 Locus 1, a uranium-series age of 114.4+/-4.2 ka on tufa capping a small collection of Middle Stone Age artifacts also provides a minimum age constraint on that material. Tufa underlying an MSA workshop (KH/MD-10) indicates that this assemblage, characterized by use of several Levallois reduction methods, was deposited after approximately 124 ka. Furthermore, uranium-series ages averaging approximately 133 ka on a Wadi Midauwara tufa (WME-10) without associated archaeological material suggest that one period of spring flow in the region began during the Marine Isotope Stage 6/5e transition, prior to the warmest portion of the last interglacial period. The dated archaeological material suggests that the distinction that has been identified between Nubian and non-Nubian complexes in the Nile Valley may hold for the Western Desert, although local complexity has yet to be fully described.     

Nitrogen fixation patterns displayed by cyanobacterial consortia in Alchichica crater-lake, Mexico

Alchichica is a saline crater-lake located in Mexico. Tufa grows on its periphery and a wind-driven Nodularia cf. spumigena bloom occurs annually. Fixation rates were assayed by the acetylene reduction method. Here, we describe the patterns of nitrogen fixation on two tufa forms before, during and after the bloom, as well as those from the planktonic cyanobacteria. We also analyzed the effect of ultraviolet radiation (under 390 nm) on the nitrogen fixation rates. Tufa showed light-stimulated nitrogen fixation, while N. cf. spumigena peaks in early morning and midnight. Both tufa forms diminished their nitrogen fixation rates after the planktonic bloom. UV radiation affected negatively nitrogen fixation rates in all forms.     

Brief communication: preliminary radiocarbon dates from Florida crania in Hrdlička's gulf states catalog

Ale? Hrdli?ka produced a tremendous amount of data in his career, much of which was published in a series of catalogs by the US National Museum. The Gulf States catalog, for example, contains raw craniometric data for over 700 individuals from the state of Florida alone. However, many of these skeletons are poorly sourced by Hrdli?ka, thus limiting their utility in modern bioarchaeological analyses where context is critical. In particular, the age of the skeletal material is often based solely on associated material culture and information on the sites themselves is not presented by Hrdli?ka. To address this impasse we attempted radiocarbon dates for 10 of the largest Florida sites published in the Gulf States catalog. In addition, archival data in the form of unpublished field notes and personal correspondence were accessed to better contextualize the radiocarbon dates and to provide some guidance on the degree of temporal variability at the sites. Eight AMS radiocarbon dates were successful. Archival data was of variable quality per site. In some cases very little is known about the provenience of the specimens. In other cases, however, individual burials could be allocated to specific strata within specific mounds. The relevance of using published raw data is discussed with respect to the Howells and Boas Immigrant datasets and the impact the dissemination of these resources has had on the discipline. Am J Phys Anthropol 145:163–167, 2011. © 2011 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

猿人洞的溶洞演化和堆积旋回与北京猿人生活环境

猿人洞的溶洞演化过程按岩溶洞穴发生发展规律可划分为６个阶段．在洞穴发育的填充过程中,依据堆积物的成因类型,猿人洞中的中更新世洞穴堆积层可分为７个堆积旋回．每个堆积旋回可与年代相当的黄土堆积旋回和深海气候旋回—一对应．堆积旋回所显示的气候和洞穴环境变化均与北京猿人生活环境及其旧石器文化的发展有着密切的关系．     

Ape-like endocast of “ape-man” Taung

I have identified and illustrated a spherical “dimple” or “depression” on the Taung endocast as indicating the most likely position of the medial end of the lunate sulcus but have not drawn an actual lunate sulcus on Taung because one is not visible. In a recent paper, R.L. Holloway (Am. J. Phys. Anthropol. 77:27–33, 1988) drew a lunate sulcus on his copy of the Taung endocast, incorrectly attributed this sulcus to me, and used it to obtain a ratio of 0.254 to describe “Falk's” position of the lunate sulcus. My published ratio of 0.242 for Taung (Falk: Am. J. Phys. Anthropol. 67:313–315, 1985a) was not considered, although the focus of Holloway's paper was my assessment of the position of the lunate sulcus. Holloway also excluded published ratios for a chimpanzee in my collection from his statistical analysis but, even so, my published ratio for Taung is still only 1.5 standard deviations from his chimpanzee mean. If my chimpanzee brain is included in the sample, the ratio for Taung is 1.2 standard deviations from the mean. Furthermore, one of Holloway's own chimpanzees (B60–7) has a ratio of 0.241, just 0.001 below my ratio for Taung. There is no sulcus where Holloway has drawn one on Taung, his “F(LS)” is not mine, his 2 mm error is not mine, and the correct ratio for my measurement of Tuang is the one that I published, not the one that Holloway attributes to me. Assessment of Holloway's chimpanzee data supports my claim that the dimple on the Taung endocast is within the chimpanzee range for the medial end of the lunate sulcus.     

Evidence for speciation underground in diving beetles (Dytiscidae) from a subterranean archipelago

Most subterranean animals are assumed to have evolved from surface ancestors following colonization of a cave system; however, very few studies have raised the possibility of “subterranean speciation” in underground habitats (i.e., obligate cave‐dwelling organisms [troglobionts] descended from troglobiotic ancestors). Numerous endemic subterranean diving beetle species from spatially discrete calcrete aquifers in Western Australia (stygobionts) have evolved independently from surface ancestors; however, several cases of sympatric sister species raise the possibility of subterranean speciation. We tested this hypothesis using vision (phototransduction) genes that are evolving under neutral processes in subterranean species and purifying selection in surface species. Using sequence data from 32 subterranean and five surface species in the genus Paroster (Dytiscidae), we identified deleterious mutations in long wavelength opsin (lwop), arrestin 1 (arr1), and arrestin 2 (arr2) shared by a sympatric sister‐species triplet, arr1 shared by a sympatric sister‐species pair, and lwop and arr2 shared among closely related species in adjacent calcrete aquifers. In all cases, a common ancestor possessed the function‐altering mutations, implying they were already adapted to aphotic environments. Our study represents one of the first confirmed cases of subterranean speciation in cave insects. The assessment of genes undergoing pseudogenization provides a novel way of testing modes of speciation and the history of diversification in blind cave animals.     

Tragelaphus nakuae: evolutionary change,biochronology, and turnover in the African Plio‐Pleistocene

Fossil Bovidae constitute one of the most significant proxy records for evolutionary and palaeoecological change in Africa. Tragelaphus nakuae is a regularly encountered antelope in the East African Plio‐Pleistocene, and is a common component of hominin faunas. As previously understood, this species ranged for almost 2 million years, encompassed a large range of morphological variation, exhibited relative stasis in the face of environmental perturbations, and left no known living descendants. I here review and revise the fossil record of this tragelaphin bovid, finding that specimens older than ～2.8 Mya and previously attributed to T. nakuae or a close form are in fact referable to a distinct, but ancestral, species. This new interpretation adds these fossil tragelaphins to the body of evidence supporting major faunal turnover occurring around 2.8 Mya in concert with global climatic change. I also document morphological changes that occur through the duration of T. nakuae, particularly after 2.3 Mya. These taxonomic revisions allow for refined biochronological estimates for several East African Plio‐Pleistocene sites and specimen assemblages of uncertain age. A phylogenetic analysis suggests that the T. nakuae lineage is related to the extant bongo (Tragelaphus eurycerus), relating this living but enigmatic forest antelope to the fossil record. One resulting palaeoecological hypothesis is that the bongo's modern fragmented range represents the relicts of a much more widely distributed late Pliocene African forest belt. This study highlights the importance of specimen‐based approaches for elucidating the pattern and timing of major evolutionary events. © 2011 The Linnean Society of London, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2011, 162 , 699–711.     

盘县大洞古人类遗址的地层和古气候研究

贵州盘县大洞的堆积物,自上而下可以分为3层。大洞主体堆积物为角砾堆积,来源于洞顶灰岩的崩塌,另外有人类遗物以及洞外片流作用带入的泥砂。人类化石、旧石器和哺乳动物化石主要分布在第2层角砾堆积中。堆积物在洞厅各部位均有相应分布,属同一沉积序列。已知的早期人类活动时间大约从260ka．B．P．开始,到142ka．B．P．前后结束,对应于深海氧同位素的第6、7阶段。角砾层下段,发育一套遭强烈溶蚀和风化的堆积物,地球化学分析结果显示其湿热的沉积环境,时间大约在260—180ka B．P．期间,对应于深海氧同位素第7阶段;大洞堆积物在气候变化周期上与黄土、青藏高原冰期序列可以对比。     

A reply to the ‘critical evaluation of the Oscillayers methods and dataset’

Brown, Hill & Haywood (2020) offered a critical evaluation of the theory and methods of the Oscillayers approach and attempted to test its utility by reproducing global circulation model (GCM)‐based palaeoclimatic reconstructions of two variables (Bio1 and Bio12) for four different time points (130 ka, 787 ka, 3.2 Ma and 3.3 Ma). They concluded that Oscillayers show poor agreement with independent GCMs and thus do not provide a robust approximation of palaeoclimate throughout the Plio‐Pleistocene. Here, I demonstrate that the authors underestimated the ability of Oscillayers to reproduce independent GCMs by not taking into account inter‐framework differences between the models used to generate the Oscillayers and PaleoClim datasets. However, upon correcting this systematic error, differences in Bio1 and Bio12 between Oscillayers and PaleoClim GCMs are less than ± 1°C or ± 50 mm, on average, in 35.9% (range: 11.8–59.0%) or 46.7% (20.8–66.0%) of values, respectively. Thus, the agreement between Oscillayers and PaleoClim is, on average, c. 1.5–2 times higher than estimated by Brown et al. (2020) and mostly well above the inter‐model agreement between two commonly used GCMs (CCSM and MIROC) for the Last Glacial Maximum. Consequently, I conclude that the Oscillayers approach does provide reasonably robust approximations of palaeoclimate throughout the Plio‐Pleistocene. Some clarifications are given.     

Physical anthropology in 1918 and the founding of the U.S. journal

In 1918, the first issue of the American Journal of Physical Anthropology was prepared and distributed by Aleš Hrdlička, the Curator of Physical Anthropology at the Smithsonian Institution. This was a singular act, both in the general and specific sense. It was the first journal of physical anthropology published in the United States, and it was a sole effort by Hrdlička, who was committed to promoting and recognizing physical anthropology as a new science in America. On this 100th anniversary of the founding of the journal, Hrdlička's efforts were successful: physical/biological anthropology is a strong and timely discipline that represents a major area of scientific research today.     

Tufa Barriers from a Caddisfly's Point of View: Streams or Lake Outlets?

The caddisfly community composition in different microhabitats at tufa barriers was studied in the Plitvice Lakes NP, Croatia. Three tufa barriers were investigated and six emergence traps were installed at each site covering various microhabitats. Sampling was conducted monthly during the year 2008. Tufa barriers are lake outlet habitats, but they feature a variety of microhabitats similar to streams, which is reflected in the composition of caddisfly communities regarding longitudinal distribution preferences. The caddisfly communities at all three sites were dominated by species typical for the rhithral zone, but there was a shift in species composition along a longitudinal gradient, from the epirhithral to the metarhithral zone. Analysis of functional feeding guilds showed considerable differences between the caddisfly community at the Labudovac barrier and both downstream barriers, shifting from one with a quite diverse composition, to one completely dominated by passive filter‐feeders. Passive filter feeders were not represented by the same taxa at up‐ and downstream barriers (i.e., by Hydropsyche species and Wormaldia species, at the Labudovac barrier and at both downstream barriers, respectively). Due to high complexity and habitat diversity, the highest diversity and equitability of caddisfly communities were recorded at microhabitats with particulate tufa and medium current velocity (10–20 cm/s). The lowest diversity and species richness were recorded for silt with low current velocity (0–10 cm/s). Abundance of caddisflies was positively correlated with current velocity due to a very high proportion of rheophilic passive filter feeders in the communities. However, community composition and structure is only to some degree influenced by microhabitat characteristics, but rather by their general position within the barrage‐lake system, i.e., longitudinal distribution and thereby availability of different food resources. (© 2012 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Evolutional process and depositional cycles of Peking Man Cave in relation to the living environments and cultural development of Peking Man

Evolutional process of the Peking Man Cave, from funnel and vertical channel development in the Early Pliocene to the cave close in the late Middle Pleistocene, may be divided into six stages. Cave deposits in filling process of the cave from Layer 13 to Layer 1 can be divided into seven depositional cycles. These cycles allow a correspond with the loess sequences S7-L2 in China and oxygen isotope stages 19-6 of climatic cycles I-C of deep sea records. The living environments and cultural development of Peking Man in closely related to the cave environments of each stage in evolutional process and each cycle in depositional process of the cave are researched in this paper. The cave evolutional process has gone through about 4 Ma. The Peking Man start entered into the cave and made stone implements before 580 ka B.P. The cultural development of Peking Man may be divided into the early, middle and late three stages about in 580–420 ka, 420–340 ka and 340–250 ka, respectively. Peking Man's first used fire is about 530 ka B.P. Habitation of Peking Man concetrated in the western part of the cave after 340 ka B.P. when eastern cave roof was collapsed. Peking Man left the cave after 250 ka B.P. during the cave was continuous collapsed and almost filled up.     

Les derniers Homo heidelbergensis et leurs descendants les néandertaliens : datation des sites d’Orgnac 3, du Lazaret et de Zafarraya

This article presents the dating results recently obtained on three archaeological sites in Europe. At Orgnac 3 (Ardèche, France) from where the last Homo heidelbergensis fossils are associated with the first evidence of levallois technique, two speleothem formations from the 5b–6–7^th layers were U-Th dated with MC-ICPMS, giving an age range of 319–255 ka (2σ) (MIS 8–9), while the volcanic ash-bearing second layer was dated by ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar, obtaining a preliminary date of 308.2 ± 6.8 ka (2σ). The combined ESR/U-Th dating of red deer enamel teeth from Lazaret cave (Alpes-Maritimes, France) attributed ages of 120–190 ka to the Acheulean and pre-Mousterian layers (MIS 6), which is in agreement with previous TIMS U-Th dates between 108 and 44 ka on calcite samples from the overlying TRA trench (MIS 5, 4, 3). At Zafarraya (Andalousie, Espagne), a number of ¹⁴C measurements on charcoal samples as well as combined ESR/U-Th dates on Capra and Equus dental enamels assigned the Mousterian artefacts and neandertalian fossils-bearing deposits an age interval between 42 and 34 ka (MIS 3).