Possibilities of sequential isotope analyses of dentine for the study of life conditions of past animal populations. New approaches to obtain intra-tooth isotopic data from collagen (stable carbon and nitrogen isotopes) in hypsodont species

Identifier:  TDX:4405

Handle: https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11797/TDX4405

Authors:  Diez-Canseco Esteban, Celia

Abstract:
Intra-tooth or sequential stable isotope analyses are nowadays widely implemented in current zooarchaeological studies. They are useful approaches for the reconstruction of paleoclimatic conditions and the study of animals’ diet, mobility, or reproductive patterns at a seasonal level. These analyses have been mainly restricted to the mineral fraction of the enamel, while the implementation in dentine collagen has been generally eluded, despite being an essential organic compound for paleodietary studies. This PhD thesis aims to contribute to the methodological development of dentine sequential analyses and to provide a referential corpus of data to promote its integration in zooarchaeological studies. The thesis addresses specific limitations faced when these analyses are applied in teeth of hypsodont species. Here, previous and new protocols of sequential analyses of dentine-collagen ( 13C and 15N) are performed in modern sheep specimens coming from experimental programs where life and diet conditions were controlled. We present a new sampling strategy that largely reduces the isotopic attenuation caused by dentine admixture. The suitability of this protocol to identify an artificial weaning in sheep is also tested. The implementation of the new protocol allows now addressing a new scope of possibilities for studying life conditions linked to environment, diet, mobility, or reproduction, in past animal populations.