Late Quaternary population expansion in gray brocket deer [Subulo gouazoubira (G. Fisher, 1814), Cervidae, Mammalia] in Brazil
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: ABSTRACT There is little information about the changes in the abundance of mammalian species in South America during the late Quaternary, which is a key parameter to understanding past ecological and evolutionary dynamics. Here, we describe a conspicuous increase in the abundance of the gray brocket deer (Subulo gouazoubira G. Fisher, 1814; Mammalia) during the late Quaternary in Brazil based on paleontological evidence. We studied the material retrieved from pitfall deposits in Cuvieri Cave (Brazil) representing three time intervals (Late Pleistocene, Pleistocene/Holocene transition, and Holocene). The deposits in this cave were previously characterized in terms of facies composition, chronology, and overall taxa and taphonomy. We combined previous data with taxonomic identification at the species level for deer (morphological and ancient DNA analyses), quantification of the number of individuals for large mammals (>10 kg), taphonomic analyses, and stratigraphic distribution of specimens. Our results show that while in the Late Pleistocene gray brocket deer corresponded to up to 18% of 38 individuals, in the Holocene they represented at least 82% of 78 individuals. We interpret this change in frequency as a considerable increase in abundance in the surroundings of the cave, after excluding major taphonomical biases. The causes for this phenomenon are uncertain but could have involved a surplus of food availability and predation release due to the late Quaternary extinction event.
Source: Journal of Quaternary Science
DOI: 10.1002/jqs.3728
Authors: Alex Hubbe, Mark Hubbe, Elver Luiz Mayer, Eliane Nunes Chim, Paulo Miguel Haddad‐Martim, Augusto S. Auler, Luís B. Piló, William J. Pestle, Alba Rey‐Iglesia, Isac dos Santos Antônio Machado, Paulo C. F. Giannini, Eluzai Dinai Pinto Sandoval, Lorena Becerra‐Valdivia, Rodrigo Elias Oliveira, Daniel Fidalgo, Eline D. Lorenzen, José Maurício Barbanti Duarte, André Vasconcelos Gomide, Marco Raczka, Damon Mullen, Alvaro Montenegro, Walter A. Neves
Institutions: Universidade Federal da Bahia, Staatliches Museum für Naturkunde Stuttgart, The Ohio State University, Universidade Federal do Vale do São Francisco, Universidade de São Paulo, University of Miami, University of Copenhagen, Universidade Estadual Paulista (Unesp), University of Oxford, University of Reading, Instituto de Estudos Avançados da Universidade de São Paulo
Language: English
Subfield: Paleontology
Field: Earth and Planetary Sciences
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $4,310
OpenAlex ID: W4411450816