Taguatagua 1: New insights into the late Pleistocene fauna, paleoenvironment, and human subsistence in a unique lacustrine context in central Chile

Labarca, Rafael; González-Guarda, Erwin; Lizama-Catalán, Álvaro; Villavicencio, Natalia A.; Alarcón-Muñoz, Jhonatan; Suazo-Lara, Felipe; Oyanadel-Urbina, Pablo; Soto-Huenchuman, Paula; Salazar, Christian; Soto‐Acuña, Sergio; Buldrini, Karina E.

doi:10.1016/j.quascirev.2020.106282

Cited by 19 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 74 publications

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“…The crown clade Octodontidae differentiated in southern South America during the Late Miocene, over 10 My later than the divergence of the total clade Octodontidae from their sister family Ctenomyidae (Upham and Patterson 2012, 2015; Verzi et al 2014, 2016; Álvarez et al 2017). The time-calibrated phylogenies show that crown genera were already differentiated in the Pliocene (Table 1), yet their fossil record is limited mostly to the latest Pleistocene–Holocene (Massoia et al 1981; Simonetti 1989, 1994; Pearson and Pearson 1993; Massoia and Silveira 1996; Simonetti and Saavedra 1998; Teta and Ortiz 2002; Saavedra and Simonetti 2003; Saavedra et al 2003; Udrizar Sauthier et al 2009; Fernández et al 2016; López et al 2016; Labarca et al 2020; Tammone et al 2020). As an exception, Tympanoctomys is recorded in the Early Pleistocene (Ameghino 1889; Verzi et al 2002); in addition, Ameghino (1891) reported presence of Aconaemys in the “Pampeano inferior” (Pleistocene) of Córdoba based on mandibular remains and isolated teeth—these specimens being currently missing from the paleontological MACN collection.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A new extinct desert rodent from the Holocene of South America and its bearing on the diversity of Octodontidae (Hystricognathi)

Verzi,

Olivares,

De Santi

et al. 2023

Journal of Mammalogy

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A Late Holocene (ca. 3,100 to 380 BP) sample of the viscacha rat genus Octomys (Octodontidae) from the Vaquerías Gruta 1 site (VQ-G1) in western Argentina is reported. Phylogenetic and morphometric comparative analyses with living octodontids support that the VQ-G1 sample is related to the desert specialists Tympanoctomys and Octomys, and is sister to the only living species of the latter, O. mimax. The estimated morphological distance to O. mimax is greater than that between pairs of congeneric octodontid species, and even greater than that between some species belonging to different genera. This suggests that the sample represents a new species, whose young age prevents interpreting it as an anagenetic ancestor of O. mimax. If the new species is the result of cladogenesis, its absence in the current fauna represents actual extinction, which among caviomorphs is added to those of †Clyomys riograndensis, †Dicolpomys fossor, †Ctenomys viarapaensis, and †Galea tixiensis—also extinct in the Late Holocene. Thus, the VQ-G1 sample provides evidence of changes in diversity and distribution undergone by small mammals in southern South America during that time. The potential contribution of the Holocene record may be key to elucidate this issue from both an evolutionary and a conservation perspective. This requires a detailed systematic approach to determine whether the taxa under study are truly independent evolutionary units, as well as geographically broad sampling efforts to distinguish the changes affecting distribution from those producing irreversible changes in diversity.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A new extinct desert rodent from the Holocene of South America and its bearing on the diversity of Octodontidae (Hystricognathi)

Verzi,

Olivares,

De Santi

et al. 2023

Journal of Mammalogy

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“…Approaches to Pleistocene-Holocene landscape reconstructions in southernmost South America follow this general trend, being mostly dominated by palynological, glaciological, and, more recently, geochemical evidence (e.g., Heusser, 2003;Moreno et al, 2012;Recasens et al, 2012;Borromei et al, 2018;Zolitschka et al, 2019). Certainly, a desirable goal is to increase the database of biological proxies, not only to gain a more accurate picture of environmental evolution, but also to understand how diverse biotic elements responded to past climatic changes (e.g., Labarca et al, 2020).…”

Section: Holocene Environmental Evolution In Cerro Benítez: Integrating Biological Evidencementioning

confidence: 98%

Fossil rodents in Mylodon Cave as indicators of late Pleistocene–Holocene environmental evolution in southern Chile

et al. 2021

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We conducted the first taphonomic and paleoenvironmental study based on late Pleistocene–Holocene small mammal remains recovered from the famous Mylodon Cave (Cerro Benítez area, Última Esperanza, Chile). Most of the analyzed material came from the extensive excavations made by Earl Saxon in 1976. We also studied late Holocene small mammal samples of the neighboring rock shelter Dos Herraduras 1. Analyzed remains were mostly produced by owls, probably living inside the caves. In Mylodon Cave, the higher values of girdle bones are consistent with a windblown litter. We recorded nine species of rodents, seven cricetids, and two caviomorphs; almost all the identified taxa integrate recent local communities. Late Pleistocene–Holocene assemblages are characterized by the chinchilla rat Euneomys, indicating unforested areas around the caves under cold and moist climatic conditions. Middle Holocene amelioration is reflected by incremental rodent species richness, including the first record of taxa clearly associated with forest (e.g., Abrothrix lanosa). Late Holocene assemblages are markedly stable, indicating local conditions similar to the current (historical) environment. Quaternary rodents from Cerro Benítez area do not indicate abrupt environmental changes during middle–late Holocene, but a progressive trend towards forest increase.

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“…In Chile, several plant species bear fruits with the megafaunal dispersal syndrome; one such plant is the endemic vine Lardizabala biternata . In the present day, there are no large native vertebrates that consume its fruits (Figure 1); hence, it is presumed to have been dispersed by the extinct megafauna that was originally present along its area of distribution, which included Gomphotheriidae, Antifer ultra , and Hippidion principale (Labarca et al, 2020). The modern south Andean deer ( Hippocamelus bisulcus ) also roamed in the area where this vine is present, but it is absent today (Vila et al, 2005).…”

Section: Figurementioning

confidence: 99%

Could foxes be surrogate seed dispersers of a megafaunal fruit vine in southern South America?

et al. 2022

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Plants that bear oversized fruits, but do not co‐occur with present‐day large‐bodied frugivores to disperse their seeds, are considered to represent seed dispersal anachronisms. It is hypothesized that these plants were originally dispersed by the megafauna that became extinct at the end of the Pleistocene. Accordingly, many plant species in South America bearing the so‐called megafaunal fruits occur in ecosystems lacking native modern megafauna. In Chile, Lardizabala biternata is an endemic vine that produces a large edible fruit, with a morphology suggesting a megafaunal seed dispersal syndrome. This species grows across the Chilean Winter Rainfall‐Valdivian Forests and has a rather wide distribution, along which there are currently no large native vertebrates that could ingest its fruits and disperse the seeds. We hypothesized that foxes may be its present‐day surrogate dispersers, because they are the only remnant mesofauna across L. biternata's range that include fruits in their diet. We collected fox scats periodically for 1 year and analyzed their contents, which revealed the presence of intact L. biternata seeds. These results suggest that foxes may be acting as present‐day dispersers of this vine; however, it is unknown whether they provide effective dispersal. Our findings stress the fragmentary state of the knowledge of ecological interactions among species in Chilean ecosystems, opening new perspectives in terms of the role of terrestrial fauna in maintaining ecosystem functions.

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Taguatagua 1: New insights into the late Pleistocene fauna, paleoenvironment, and human subsistence in a unique lacustrine context in central Chile

Cited by 19 publications

References 74 publications

A new extinct desert rodent from the Holocene of South America and its bearing on the diversity of Octodontidae (Hystricognathi)

A new extinct desert rodent from the Holocene of South America and its bearing on the diversity of Octodontidae (Hystricognathi)

Fossil rodents in Mylodon Cave as indicators of late Pleistocene–Holocene environmental evolution in southern Chile

Could foxes be surrogate seed dispersers of a megafaunal fruit vine in southern South America?

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