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Reconstructing past migratory behaviour of reindeer (Rangifer tarandus): Insights from geometric morphometric analysis of proximal phalanx morphology from extant caribou populations

Reindeer mobility patterns vary widely in modern ecosystems, notably between more open or more wooded environments. This renders the reconstruction of past reindeer mobility patterns challenging, while being at the same time key if archaeologists want to better understand the role that reindeer herd...

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Autores principales: Galán López, Ana Belén, Pelletier, Maxime, Discamps, Emmanuel
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Public Library of Science 2023
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10411787/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/37556460
http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0285487
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author Galán López, Ana Belén
Pelletier, Maxime
Discamps, Emmanuel
author_facet Galán López, Ana Belén
Pelletier, Maxime
Discamps, Emmanuel
author_sort Galán López, Ana Belén
collection PubMed
description Reindeer mobility patterns vary widely in modern ecosystems, notably between more open or more wooded environments. This renders the reconstruction of past reindeer mobility patterns challenging, while being at the same time key if archaeologists want to better understand the role that reindeer herds played in the subsistence and territorial organisation of Prehistoric hunter-gatherer societies. Studying the morphology associated with different habitats and mobility patterns can be a useful method for understanding past reindeer behaviour. To access paleoecological information, the relationship between locomotor anatomy and substrate type can be explored in modern animals and transposed to the past, as previous studies have proven that an animal´s environment affects bone morphology. In this study, 3D Geometric Morphometrics are used to explore the impact of extant reindeer habitat type and mobility pattern on phalanx morphology. Results obtained reflects on the potential archaeological application of such an approach for paleoecological reconstructions. Size and shape of phalanx vary significantly, yet complex to interpret in light of interplaying factors such as subspecies, sexual dimorphism and the influence of migration costs, snow cover and substrate type. If direct application to the archaeological record remains preliminary, this first study permits to highlight promising avenues for future research.
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spelling pubmed-104117872023-08-10 Reconstructing past migratory behaviour of reindeer (Rangifer tarandus): Insights from geometric morphometric analysis of proximal phalanx morphology from extant caribou populations Galán López, Ana Belén Pelletier, Maxime Discamps, Emmanuel PLoS One Research Article Reindeer mobility patterns vary widely in modern ecosystems, notably between more open or more wooded environments. This renders the reconstruction of past reindeer mobility patterns challenging, while being at the same time key if archaeologists want to better understand the role that reindeer herds played in the subsistence and territorial organisation of Prehistoric hunter-gatherer societies. Studying the morphology associated with different habitats and mobility patterns can be a useful method for understanding past reindeer behaviour. To access paleoecological information, the relationship between locomotor anatomy and substrate type can be explored in modern animals and transposed to the past, as previous studies have proven that an animal´s environment affects bone morphology. In this study, 3D Geometric Morphometrics are used to explore the impact of extant reindeer habitat type and mobility pattern on phalanx morphology. Results obtained reflects on the potential archaeological application of such an approach for paleoecological reconstructions. Size and shape of phalanx vary significantly, yet complex to interpret in light of interplaying factors such as subspecies, sexual dimorphism and the influence of migration costs, snow cover and substrate type. If direct application to the archaeological record remains preliminary, this first study permits to highlight promising avenues for future research. Public Library of Science 2023-08-09 /pmc/articles/PMC10411787/ /pubmed/37556460 http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0285487 Text en © 2023 Galán López et al https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) , which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
spellingShingle Research Article
Galán López, Ana Belén
Pelletier, Maxime
Discamps, Emmanuel
Reconstructing past migratory behaviour of reindeer (Rangifer tarandus): Insights from geometric morphometric analysis of proximal phalanx morphology from extant caribou populations
title Reconstructing past migratory behaviour of reindeer (Rangifer tarandus): Insights from geometric morphometric analysis of proximal phalanx morphology from extant caribou populations
title_full Reconstructing past migratory behaviour of reindeer (Rangifer tarandus): Insights from geometric morphometric analysis of proximal phalanx morphology from extant caribou populations
title_fullStr Reconstructing past migratory behaviour of reindeer (Rangifer tarandus): Insights from geometric morphometric analysis of proximal phalanx morphology from extant caribou populations
title_full_unstemmed Reconstructing past migratory behaviour of reindeer (Rangifer tarandus): Insights from geometric morphometric analysis of proximal phalanx morphology from extant caribou populations
title_short Reconstructing past migratory behaviour of reindeer (Rangifer tarandus): Insights from geometric morphometric analysis of proximal phalanx morphology from extant caribou populations
title_sort reconstructing past migratory behaviour of reindeer (rangifer tarandus): insights from geometric morphometric analysis of proximal phalanx morphology from extant caribou populations
topic Research Article
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10411787/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/37556460
http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0285487
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