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The Taphonomy and Paleoenvironmental Implications of the Laetoli Micromammals

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Paleontology and Geology of Laetoli: Human Evolution in Context

Part of the book series: Vertebrate Paleobiology and Paleoanthropology Series ((VERT))

Abstract

Recent fieldwork conducted between 1998 and 2005 significantly increased the sample of fossil rodent specimens from Laetoli, Tanzania, the type locality of Australopithecus afarensis and this allowed the identification of several new micromammal species. This chapter discusses the taphonomy and paleoenvironmental implications of the Laetoli rodents. The taphonomic analysis of the new material looks at element representation, breakage patterns and bone surface modification and finds evidence of predator activity and weathering. In terms of paleoenvironment, the Upper Laetolil Beds assemblage has a very low abundance of murine rodents, a predominantly arboreal taxon (Thallomys) alongside an arboreal sciurid (Paraxerus), and several fossorial and burrowing taxa, which we interpret to indicate the presence of acacia trees growing on loose, well-drained sediments in a semi-arid environment. The Upper Ndolanya Beds sample remains small, and the species preserved are the same as those found in the Upper Laetolil Beds, with the exception of Thryonomys. This provides tentative evidence for a more mesic local environment in Upper Ndolanya times relative to the Upper Laetolil Beds.

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Acknowledgments

Thanks to T. Harrison for providing the new rodent material. This work was sponsored by funds from the NSF-RHOI grant under the Taphonomy Working Group. SEM pictures were taken by C. Chancogne Weber and G. Mascarel (MNHN Paris). We thank Yolanda Fernandez-Jalvo and Peter Andrews for taphonomic ­discussions about this material, as well as two anonymous reviewers whose comments helped significantly in the development of the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Anthropology, University of Texas at Austin, 1 University Station C3200, Austin, TX, 78712, USA

    Denné N. Reed

  2. Department of Systematics and Evolution – CP51, UMR7205 CNRS: Origine structure & évolution de la Biodiversité, MNHN, 55 rue Buffon, 75005, Paris, France

    Christiane Denys

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  1. Denné N. Reed
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Correspondence to Denné N. Reed .

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  1. Center for the Study of Human Origins, Department of Anthropology, New York University, 25 Waverly Place, New York, NY, 10003, USA

    Terry Harrison

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Reed, D.N., Denys, C. (2011). The Taphonomy and Paleoenvironmental Implications of the Laetoli Micromammals. In: Harrison, T. (eds) Paleontology and Geology of Laetoli: Human Evolution in Context. Vertebrate Paleobiology and Paleoanthropology Series. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-9956-3_13

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