New Data on the Distribution and Isotopic Characteristics of Mammoth Mammuthus primigenius (Proboscidea, Elephantidae) Remains in the Late Pleistocene in the Minusinsk Depression (South Siberia)

Radiocarbon dating of woolly mammoths remains from the Minusinsk Depression allowed us to clarify the peculiarities and timing of the species distribution in southern Siberia in the Late Pleistocene. It was demonstrated in this work that mammoths were most numerous in the cold periods in southern Siberia, and this species reached its maximal number during the Last Glacial Maximum. At the moment, there is no single discovery of a mammoth that could be confidently attributed to a warm time interval. It is possible that, during the warm intervals of the Late Pleistocene, the conditions in the south of Siberia were unfavorable for a permanent habitat of the Mammuthus primigenius species. In general, the mammoths of the Minusinsk Depression preserve species-specific stable carbon and nitrogen isotope (δ13C and δ15N) signature in the bone collagen as compared with other large herbivores. The enriched values of δ15N with the depleted δ13С were noted for them; on the contrary, reindeer demonstrate the depleted δ15N values and the enriched δ13С. The isotopic signals of other species of herbivorous mammals are located between the ranges for mammoths and reindeer. A comparison of data obtained from δ13C and δ15N for the remains of woolly mammoths from the Minusinsk Depression with similar indices in animals of the north of Eastern Siberia reveals significant differences. Differences in the diet of animals in the Minusinsk Depression and mammoths of other regions are one of the possible reasons for this phenomenon. However, similar trends (relatively depleted δ15N values and enriched δ13C values) in the Late Pleistocene are typical for both reindeer and woolly rhinoceroses of the Minusinsk Depression. This suggests that differences between the mammoth remains of the Minusinsk Depression and mammoths of the northern territories in carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes are associated not only with the type of nutrition, but also with somewhat different isotopic background of the regions caused by a local environment.