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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Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0285487 https://dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0285487 |
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crplos:10.1371/journal.pone.0285487 2024-05-19T07:38:55+00:00 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 Iovita, Radu Agence Nationale de la Recherche H2020 Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions 2023 http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0285487 https://dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0285487 en eng Public Library of Science (PLoS) http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ PLOS ONE volume 18, issue 8, page e0285487 ISSN 1932-6203 journal-article 2023 crplos https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0285487 2024-05-01T06:57:41Z 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. Article in Journal/Newspaper caribou Rangifer tarandus PLOS PLOS ONE 18 8 e0285487 |
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language |
English |
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. |
author2 |
Iovita, Radu Agence Nationale de la Recherche H2020 Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Galán López, Ana Belén Pelletier, Maxime Discamps, Emmanuel |
spellingShingle |
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 |
author_facet |
Galán López, Ana Belén Pelletier, Maxime Discamps, Emmanuel |
author_sort |
Galán López, Ana Belén |
title |
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_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_sort |
reconstructing past migratory behaviour of reindeer (rangifer tarandus): insights from geometric morphometric analysis of proximal phalanx morphology from extant caribou populations |
publisher |
Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
publishDate |
2023 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0285487 https://dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0285487 |
genre |
caribou Rangifer tarandus |
genre_facet |
caribou Rangifer tarandus |
op_source |
PLOS ONE volume 18, issue 8, page e0285487 ISSN 1932-6203 |
op_rights |
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0285487 |
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PLOS ONE |
container_volume |
18 |
container_issue |
8 |
container_start_page |
e0285487 |
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1799478416998662144 |