Diet and environment of Mylodon darwinii based on pollen of a Late-Glacial coprolite from the Mylodon Cave in southern Chile

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We studied the pollen content of a well-preserved coprolite of a Late-Glacial giant ground sloth (Mylodon darwinii) from the Mylodon Cave, province Última Esperanza, southern Chile. The specimen was obtained in 1909 and has been stored in a museum in the Netherlands since. It was radiocarbon dated to 13,140 ± 55 BP (15,927–15,522 cal BP), which fits with other radiocarbon dates showing the early Late-Glacial presence of M. darwinii in the province Última Esperanza. Contemporaneous oxygen isotope data from Antarctic EPICA Dome C indicates that our Mylodon specimen lived during a warming phase of the Late-Glacial, ca. 1000 years before the start of the Antarctic Cold Reversal. We compared our pollen data with pollen records showing contemporaneous regional vegetation and discuss the uncertainties in the interpretation of pollen spectra from faeces. To expand on the pollen data, we tested ancient DNA preservation in the sample; we sequenced ~ 9.4 million DNA reads and found that the concentration of ancient plant DNA is below detectable levels. Pollen analysis confirms earlier findings that the Mylodon was a grazer, but the discovery of large amounts of Fragaria and Azorella pollen in the faeces may indicate that Mylodon was also able to select and consume specific plants, and therefore could also be regarded as a selective feeder.

OriginalsprogEngelsk
Artikelnummer104549
TidsskriftReview of Palaeobotany and Palynology
Vol/bind296
Antal sider11
ISSN0034-6667
DOI
StatusUdgivet - 2022

Bibliografisk note

Funding Information:
The authors thank Dr. Sanne Palstra, Groningen University, for radiocarbon dating and calibration and Mr. Hans Wildschut for photography. Mr. S. McCarron kindly improved the English. The present paper is in memory of Dr. Peter J.H. van Bree, former conservator at the Zoological Museum in Amsterdam.

Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 The Authors

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